Memoires Of Napoleon I

Napoleon

From a Bust by Canova in Florence

Memoirs of

NAPOLEON I

compiled from his
own writings

by

F. M. KIRCHEISEN

I'REDKRICK COLLINS, B.A.

Iliib

fifteen

[lutes

London

HUTCHINSON fif CO. (PUBLISHERS) LTD
34> 35 ® 36 Patcmosicr Row, E.C. 4

Printed in Great Britain at

The Mayflower Press, Plyvioulhj William Brendon & Son, Ltd.

CONTENTS

I. Yotmt, 17^^-1792 *9

II . M A YOU'»a Gr^sTtiAL or ntn Ur\C(Li.'nov, 1793-1705 37

HI. OwAuni TO Tavo*, i79<^I797 . . . . 4O

!V. W Tiir l-A*«o or Tia IVnAutm, 1790-1799 . . 73

V. FoRiftso Titr. Stattimav, 1799-1C05 ... 95

VI. I*i -ntt IJwLUAxcY Of tin: I'Mmr, iDoO-jOii . 127

VII. Lovr— \Yo«t.s— MAiiniAcr—rAMttv . . -152

VIII. Os Uruciov, Tiir OcfROt, AH!) Tiir Poir . . 1C4

IX. Mv Covrturoiutitra lO:

X. From ntr. Suuwrr to nir Fall, 1C12-1O15 . , 193

XI. Tiiouaim asd Piam 230

XII. YrARi or Surrruiso : St. Ilrtr-SA, iFij-iBji , . 336

Eorron’j Pomaurr 274

Ikdcx 2Qt

5

LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS

NArOLEOV

Profa 4 Hail l»y Canovi H riarracr

CuARua-MAfRict tit TALtj:YRA\-T>, PutNCf. ot HrsrNTKTo . 35

An oJ«l Uthrtfr'iph fron » Drawnj b)* C

Napou-qs" m GnNrJiAL-r*f‘Cujfr or tiic rnrscu Aituv .
HrctavisJ by H»W frcn « On*l"f by «n nnVn-'wfl

The EupRtsi JcnrpittNf. 64

Trwn k I'ortrait by CcUl'm l« Tl la lb** WrMltlr* Mufam

Napouon' i*« Tiic Hattu: op Arcola .... Bo
rron kn I>grivir<5 by J ti^^a Cn»»

MARiitAL Drftnitr.K . . • (><!!>

FfotB • I’ortnit b)*l*al'W the Yott*»rrt In Ibf*

GnsttUkL Mottf-AU laO

Drawn liy J A. DoroitcOt. rafravwj liy II ScbmUU

AlXXASOtR I 160

From k OratcniioTkr)' Kagravtse

Napoltos in Madiud 176

Frora k Ficloni by Cnil^ Vcmfl is Ibr Vcm>l!M >tu*ruru

Eocr-Ni: B&auiiarnam 20O

From a Fortnit by CUcune Antonini

Marshal Lannes ........ 32 .j

From a Portrait by IVnin in Ibe VcmllW >ItnruRi

Kino JoAcnm Murat 224

From a Portrait by C^ranl In tbe VrmiUca i!u»ru»i

Tiir. Battle op Waterloo 23?

From a Lithograph by Schuppan

The Duke or Rkichstadt .... . 23G

From an EDgravlng by jOgel Irom Daring«r
Napoleon’s Death 272

From a Lithograph by Schuppan from Strubea

7

MEMOIRS OF NAPOLEON I

CHAPTKR 1
YOUTH, i7{«-t7fiJ
MV IilItTlI

I WAS bom just at the lime iliat my country ssaj
being conqucrcti. Tliiiiy lliousanti I'rcncli lliroun
upon our coasli, «lio covercrl llic llironc of freedom
ssitli blood, that was tlic terrible spectacle winch my
c)cs first beheld. Tlic shricLs of pain of the d)ang, the
wailing of the oppressed, tears and despair surrounded
my cradle from my birth, litis cs’cnt happened suddenl)
and unexpectedly ; just like my rise anil the ntisfonunes
which li.avc hcfallen me since then. My mother, who had
shared the wdssiiudes of the struggle for freedom, happened
to be near her confinement. It was the Te.ast of the
Assumption. She ilioughl she was strong enough to lake
part in the celebrations of the day, but she was mistaken.
She had not got .as far ns the church sshen she felt the first
pains. She immediately returned home, and had only
Just lime to Teach the drawing-room, giving birth to me
on an old carpet on which were worked large patterns.
I was named Napoleon For ccntuncs that was the name
that the second-born sons of the family bore from an
ancestor who had been famous in the history of Italy.
What my mollicr had to pul up with is incredible. Losses
and deprivations of all kinds, in addition to the hardships
of civil war ; she had really a man’s head on a weak
woman’s body.

MV PARENTS AND MV UNCLE LUCIANO
My father was a very handsome man. He w.as of a
lively, imaginative disposition, fiery and passionate. In
his love of freedom he svas an absolute f.uiatic ; but he

10 . MEMOIRS OF NAPOLEON I

conceived it as it is impossible to be at the beginning of a
revolution which ’ overthrows the whole existing order
before there is anything ready to be set up in its place.
He would have died with the Girondins. In the struggle
for the independence of Corsica he distinguished himself,
and ventured to proclaim the only too true principle that
all people should be free when freedom can be purchased
without any special sacrifice, further, that only those
deserved freedom who shrank at nothing to obtain it. In
theory, my father was right, but in practice he failed ;
for Corsica’s war with France was an act of folly only
comparable to the struggle between a giant and a dwarf.

My father had squandered his inheritance in Pisa. In
order to celebrate the taking of his degree he felt himself
obliged to provide a treat for his friends which cost him ^
6000 francs, a sum which was equal to two years of his
income. Fortunately, we had an old uncle who was a
canon, and who, in our circumstances, was very rich.
He had an income of at least 5000 francs, which we
inherited. One day my sister Pauline ventured to play a
little trick on him by taking away his purse while he slept.
That is to say, the good old man always kept his purse
under his pillow. It was a great temptation to the roguish
Pauline to see his despair and fury when he woke up and
failed to find his hidden treasure. And Pauline kept it
back till the evening. But it was only Pauline, the darling
of my mother and of our old uncle, who dared to play a
trick like that. And she felt assured of not even being
scolded for it.

My mother was a very orderly and virtuous woman,
but, like all mothers, she did not love all her children
equally well. Pauline and I were the favourites, Pauline
because she was the prettiest and daintiest of my sisters,
and I because perhaps a natural instinct told her that I
would be the founder of the family’s greatness.

MY SELF-WILL

I was a headstrong child. Nothing overawed me,
nothing impressed me. I was quarrelsome and pug-
nacious, and feared nobody. I struck one person, I
scratched another, till all were afraid of me. My brother
Joseph was the chief sufferer. I struck him and bit him.

II

YOUTH, 1769-1792

Tlicn it was he wlio got ihc scolding, for, before he had
time to recover from tlic blow I had complained to
mother. My cunning stood me in good stead, as Mama
Lctizia would ha\c punished me for my pugnacity. She
would neser have suITcrcd my attacLs. riiough I grew
up wild and untamable I iicvcrthclcss recognised tlic
maternal authority. It is to my mother and her excellent
principles that 1 owe all my success and any good that
1 have done. I do not even hcsit.itc to aflinn that the
future of a child depends on its mother.

MV Dran isuvs-n iioiii;

Prom my earliest youth I had a reputation and influence
in Corsica. Tlic steepest mountains, the deepest ravines,
the wildest mount.ain torrents, the abjsscs even, had no
terrors for me. I roamed about the island from one end
to the other ; and 1 never had occasion to admit that my
confidence ss'as ill-founded. liven in Bocagnano, where
hatred and revenge arc bcoucathcd to the sesenth genera-
tion, and where the numocr of a girl’s male cousins is
considered in fixing the amount of her dowry, 1 was
ss'clcome.

One’s native land is ahrays dear. Corsica [Kssscssed a
thousand charms. Ossing to their isolation, isl.andcrs
have alsvajs something original in their characteristics.
Tlicy arc protected from the continual intenningling
svhich the continent must undergo. Mountaineers possess
a strength of character and a greatness of soul which tire
peculiar to them. Everything in Corsieo is better, even
tlic smell of the earth. I could have detected the smell
with closed eyes, and nowhere else have I found it. I
still often fancy myself transpl.antcd into my childhood’s
days, in the midst of precipices, high summits, and deep
ravines.

ciiildiiood’s pranks

Prom the time that I was very small I used to play
svith toy soldiers, and whenever I saw real soldiers pass by
I used to run after them. My liking for the c.\act sciences
showed itself early, and my mother often told me that
while my brothers and sisters were plajdng their childish
games 1 used to draw mathematical figures on the w'all.

12 AiEMOIRS OF NAPOLEON I

Like all childrciij I was given to making fun of people.
When my grandmother was old and bent she seemed to
me, and also to my sister Pauline, like an old witch. She
used a stick to walk with. In her affection for us she used
to bring us sweets, which, however, did not prevent
either Pauline or myself from running after her and
imitating her. Unfortunately she noticed this once and
complained about it to our mother. She told her that she
was bringing us up without respect for our grandparents.
Although our mother loved us very much she would
stand no nonsense, and I saw' in her eyes that trouble ^vas
brewing. It w'as not long before Pauline received her
punishment, for it is easier to lift up a Httle girl’s dress
than to unbutton a boy’s breeches. In the evening my
mother tried to punish me too, but in vain, and I thought
that the affair had blown over. But when I tried to kiss
her next morning she pushed me away roughly.

One day — I had quite forgotten the incident — my
mother called me and said : “ Napoleon, you are in^ited
to the Governor’s house to dinner, go and change.”
Delighted to be aUo^ved to dine with the officers, upstairs
I go. But my mother •svas like the cat that lies in w'ait for
the mice. Suddenly she enters the room, shutting the
door behind her, and I perceive the trap into \vhich I have
fallen ; but it wns too late to escape the punishment, and
I had to take my w'hipping on the part adapted for the
purpose.

On account of my love for soldiering my father intended
making me an officer and the milder Joseph a priest.
After attending several schools in the Island, in w'hich
I learnt very little indeed, my father tried to get me into
a French military school ; but, as I had first to learn
French — ^rmtil then I spoke only my native dialect —
I was placed, along with my brother Joseph, in the High
School at Autun, •which w'e entered on the ist January,
1779. There they used often to annoy me about the
conquest of my country by the French. But I used to
retort sharply : “ Had there been only four to one Corsica
would never have been taken, but there w'ere ten to one.”
And when the Abbe Chardon remarked that, an-y^vay,
we had a very good general in our Paoli, I replied :
“ Yes, and I should like to resemble him.”

YOUTH, 1709-1792

>3

I ARRIVn AT DRICNNX

In the middle of May 1779 I entered the Militar)’
School ofBriennc, and ^•as happy. All kinds of thoughts
began to run through my head. I found the need to
learn, to acquire knowledge, to make progress. I devoured
books. Soon I was the only subject of conversation.
I became an object of wonder and envy ; I had confidence
in my iRDwer, and enjoyed my superiority.

As I still spoke French badly, and found it hard to
accustom mj’sclf to a completely dificrent mode of living,
I generally kept away from my companions at first, and
preferred to occupy mj-sclf with myboola. Extraordinarily
sensitive as I was, I sufTcred infinitely from the ridicule
of my schoolmates, who used to jeer at me as a foreigner.
My pride and sense of honour would tolerate no insult to
my eountry or to the beloved national hero Paoli. Once
I had been guilty of some slight offence, whereupon a
particularly severe m.ister snorted out : “ On your knees,
hir. Bonaparte, you will take your dinner kneeling."
Greatly c.xcited, I answered : " 1 trill, if necessaiy, take
my dinner standing, but not on my knees, for in our
family sve only kneel to God.” And .as tliis brutal teacher
still insisted on his demand, I uttered a cry of rage, and
fell to tile floor insensible.

In Brienne it was only in the c.xact sciences that I took
an interest. Everyone used to say ; “ That is a boy
whose talent is all for gcometiy.” I lived apart from my
comrades and had chosen a small comer in the courtyard
to which I would retire in order to give myself up to my
day^lrcams, for I have always been fond of indulging in
visions. When my companions tried to take this retreat
from me I defended it with all my might. Already I had
the feeling that my will was stronger than that of the
others, and that whatever I fancied must belong to me.
I was not liked in the school ; it takes time to be appre-
ciated, and that I had not got. But even when there was
nothing to do there always remained the indefinite feeling
that I was losing nothing through the indifference of
others.

14

MEMOIRS OF NAPOLEON I

THE SNOWBALL FIGHT IN BRIENNE

The winter of 1783-84 was unusually severe, and a
huge amount of snow fell, more than had been seen in the
south of France for a long time. We had just been receiv-
ing instruction in Fortification, and I resolved to put
theory into practice. My schoolmates were also eager for
it ; and in the courtyard there shortly rose a small fort of
snow, with bastions, escarpments, traverses, etc. Of
course, I was always the leader, whether on the side of the
attackers or that of the defenders, and I contrived such
skilful plans that victory always remained with my side in
the snowball fights. Unfortunately, the pleasure did not
last long, for we put stones in the snowballs, so that many
boys were injured, among them my friend Bourrienne,
and the game was forbidden.

RECOLLECTIONS OF BRIENNE

Once, when my mother visited me in Brienne, she was
SO astonished at my leanness and the change in my
features, that she declared tliat another had been put in
my place, and she hesitated a few moments before she
recognised me. I had indeed altered greatly, for I used
to work even in the recreation hours, and my nights were
passed in thinking over the lessons of the day. From the
very beginning I could not bear to be anything less than
the first in the class.

My father had gone to Paris to obtain the advice of the
Queen’s (Marie Antoinette’s) physician on a chronic
ailment of the stomach. But he returned to Corsica
without visiting Brienne. That was no pleasure for me,
as one can easily imagine. As, however, his health, and
the well-being of the loved ones at home, made his return
to Corsica necessary, I could not do otherwise than fall in
with his wishes, and I tried to console myself with the fact.

Besides, how could I be otherwise than happy and
contented in Brienne, as I was assured of my father’s
lasting love and affection, as well as of his care to advance
and support me in all things.

For me, Brienne is my country ! There I got my first
impressions as a man, and how strange it is that it was at
this place, where I found an unspeakable charm in my

YOUTH, 17G9-1792 15

youth reading and pondering Ear from the noisy gamM of
my companions, that I would probably have been killed
wlicn Emperor, if Gourgaud had not blown out, with his
pistol, the brains of a Cossack whose lance was already
toucliing my breast.

I was delighted that Joseph had also gone with my
father to Corsiea, but hoped that he would enter Brienne
on the 1st November, 17II.1, that is to say, in tlic course of
a year. Joseph was well qualified for admission to the
sehool, for the head master assured me that he would be
extremely well received. Father Petrault, .an excellent
mathematical master, had assured me specially that he
would undertake with ple.asurc to teaeh my brother, and
if Joseph worked hard we might perhaps take the Artillery
examination together. Lueien, who had bceome a
boarder at the hlilitaiy Sehool a short time previously
was working very hard and had, so far, passed the public
examinations very ivell.

I MI CHOSEN FOR THE PARIS MILITARY SCHOOL
In the year 1783 I was one of those who were seleeted
from the dlitc to complete my education at the Military
School in Paris. The selection tvas made yearly by an
inspector who risited the twelve military schools. This
ofiicc was filled at the time by General the Chevalier
Kcralio, author of a work on Tactics, and formerly
instructor of the then King of Bavaria (tlic former Duke
of Zwcibrilckcn). He w.ts a nice old gentleman, quite
suited to his post. He was fond of boys, used to play with
them after having examined them, and invited to the
master’s table those who had plc.iscd him most. For me
he had a quite special liking and encouraged me in every

E ossiblc way. He selected me for the Paris Military
chool although I had not yet reached the necessary age.
Now it was only in mathematics that I was well adv.anccd,
and the school staff represented to him that it would be
better to leave me there till the following year, in which
case I would have time to perfect myself in tlic other
branches. But the Chevalier Kcralio would not listen to
this imd said : “ I know what I am doing. If I am
oveniding the general rule in this case, it is not because
I wish to favour his family, for I don’t even know this

iG MKMOIRS OF NAPOLEON I

boy’s f.iinily. Ho hirn.srir is thr r:\usc of iny decision ;
1 hnve discovtnrd brre a spark which raniiol be sunicienlly
fanned into flame.”

The f'ood Cheva.lirr dierl very shavrtly ahenvards, btit
his successor, Monsieur Reit>’:^*^id, wiu» did not perhaps
possess his acumen, t:arne.d out, nevenhrie:?, the itUctnlion
of his predecessor, and I was sem to Paris.

1 nXCIIANGI’

niur.NNr.

roR Titr. i‘Atas Mtt.rr.Miv school

After a stay of live vear.s I left Puienne on the
30lh October, I’/n.j, aiul entered the Paris .Military'
School two days later. Here the most of my comrades
enjoyed themselves to tlieir hearts’ desire, and sptml much
money, but learnt nothint: for their future c.irccr? as
soldicns. We were maeniticcntlv fed and looked after,
and treated on all oeeasions like, oliicers with gigantic
incomes, which v,'crc certainly greater than the fortunes of
our Corsican families, and more considerable than the
pay which ^vc were to receive later on.

DEATH OF ?.tY FATHER

At the end of March 1 785 I met with a great grief. It
would be usclc.s-s, if I wished to try, to express the deep
pain that I felt at the death of my father. We lost in him
a father, and God alone knows what a fatlier he had been
to us through his tenderness and love ! In cvcr)*thing he
was the support of our youth.

In him Cor.sica lost a zealous, enlightened, and unselfish
citizen. That he was chosen many times as Deputy is the
best proof of the confidence which his fellow-citizens had
in him, and yet he was destined to die in a foreign land, a
hundred leagues a^vay from his family, far from cvciy'onc
whom he loved. It is true Joseph was by his side at that
tciTiblc moment, which was doubtless a great consolation
to him, but not to be compared with the happiness of
ending his life’s course in his own country surrounded by
his \vife and family.

I did not remain long in the Paris Military School
which I liked VC17 much on account of the good discipline
prevailing there. The physical exercises suited me w^ell.
I gradually lost my reserve, although I ^vas still often
laughed at on account of my foreign appearance and

YOUTH, 1765-1792 17

accent. On tlie vliolc, however, I worked harder llian
ever ; for, after the death of my dear father I hoped soon
to obtain my commission, in order to be a Iielp to the
family. Although Josepli was a year older than m)’sclf,
I was .already looked upon, after my father’s death, as the
real head of tlic family.

AS SECOST) UEtjTr„S'AVT IN TltE LA f£RE REGIMENT IN
VALENCE

In September 1785, along with my friend Dcs Mazis,
I was gazetted as Second Lieutenant to the La Fire
Artillery Regiment, which was then q^uartcred in Valence.
On the 5th of November we entered this tosm. Here I
lodged with a worthy lady. Mademoiselle Bou was an
old maid aged fifty. Her father, formerly a button
manufacturer, now owned a literaty coficc house where
tlic gently of the town used to meet. Bv chance these

S uarten were assigned to me. I liked tiiem well, and
lereforc I remained. I shall never forget the time of my
stay in Valence and the kindness of ftlademoiscllc and
Monsieur Bou, for they arc engraved on my heart, and
here recollection docs not change its quarters.

I CONTEMPLATE SUICIDE

As I was poor I gave myself up completely to my duties
and my books. My relatives, my countiy, and my
vencrauon for Paoli and Rousseau were my only passion.
Far from home and those I loved a repugnance to life
often overcame me so that I thought of suicide. At this
time — it was the beginning of M.ay 1786 — I tvrotc the
following words :

“ Always alone in the midst of people, I return home in
order to give m)'self up with unspeakable mehancholy to
ray dreams. How do 1 regard life to-day ? I give way to
thoughts of death. I stand at the dawn of life and may
hope to live long. For six or seven years now I have been
absent from my country. \Vliat pleasure shall I feel
when, in four months’ time, I see my countrymen and my
relatives again ? Can I conclude from the tender recollec-
tions of my youthful enjoyment that my happiness will be
complete ? What madness then drives me to wish to kill

i8 MEMOIRS OF NAPOLEON I

myself? Why am I really in the world ? As I must die
some lime it would perhaps be better if I killed myself !
If I had already sixty years behind me I would respect the
prejudices of my contemporaries and wait patiently for
nature to complete her work. But, as I am beginning to
feel the seriousness of life, and nothing any longer gives
me pleasure, why should I suffer the days from which
I can promise myself no further good ? What a gap
there is between mankind and nature 1 Flow cowardly,
base, and crawling men arc ! What tragedy awaits me in
my counltyf ? My fcllow-countiy'mcn arc loaded with
chains ! and have to bear, trembling, the weight of the
oppressor’s hand ! Gone arc the brave Corsicans ^rhorn a
hero once inspired with his virtues, those enemies of tyrants,
luxur)', and base courtiers. Proud, and filled with the noble
feeling of his worth, the Corsican led a happy life when he
had devoted the day to public affairs. Then he spent the
night in the tender arms of a loved spouse. Good sense
and enthusiasm caused all the cares of the day to be
forgotten. Love and nature created divine nights. But
they also have vanished like the dreams of those happy
days ! You Frenchmen ! It is not enough that you have
robbed us of what we loved most, you ha\fe even destroyed
our manners and customs ! The present condition of my
country and the impossibility of altering it arc a further
reason for leaving a world in which I am compelled by
duty to love people whom I should naturally hate. What
attitude shall I adopt, how shall I speak when I arrive in
rny country ? When his countiy’^ no longer exists a good
citizen should die. If one man eould save my country-
men by saerificing liis life, I would at once rise and thrust
the avenging sword into the breast of the tyrant in order
to revenge my country and its injured rights.

Life has become a burden to me, for I no longer enjoy
any pleasure, and everytliing causes nie pain. It is a
burden to me because the people with whom I live, and
probably always shall live, have manners and customs
which are as different from mine as the light of the
moon from that of the sun. I cannot, therefore, live as

I should wish to, and thence arises an aversion to every-
thing.”

YOUTH, 1769-1792

«9

I BECOME A DISCIPLE OF ROUSSEAU

I occupied m)-sclf much with Rousseau and those tvho
defended or attacked him and his doetrine. A Geneva
pastor named Roustan Iiad attempted in Lt Contrat
Scciak to refute tlie views uttered by my Iiero. I was of a
different opinion, and I find in my papers, whieli, on last
leaving Paris, I had entrusted to my uncle Feseh, the
following words :

Is the Christian religion good for the politieal con-
stitution of a state ? Rousseau has sueh doubts about it
that he saj-s : “ Tlic Catholic religion is so obviously
reprehensible that it would not be worth the trouble, if
one wanted to give oneself the pleasure, to prove the
contrary.”

Everytliing which disturbs the social unity is of no
toIuc. All arrangements which set a man in conflict
witli himself arc worthless. As these principles arc
incontestable Monsieur Roustan cannot change them, and
yet he denies that the Reformed Churches h.avc that
fault. As for the Catholic religion, it is absolutely obvious
that the unity of the state is being broken. Let us go into
the reasons tvliich lie adduces for attacking Rousseau’s
judgment. It is true that Christianity and governments
have as a common purpose the happiness of the people.
But, docs it follow that the unity of the State is not being
disturbed ? Without doubt, no ! Tlicy seek the same
goal, but in opposite ways. Christianity makes people
happy through the contempt which it inspires for all tlic
sufferings inherent in our earthly life ; it forbids its
followers to obey cvciy l.aw that runs contrary to its own ;
it forbids the carrying out of every unjust order, even
when it comes from the people. It therefore acts in
opposition to the fundamental law of social order, the
foundations of government, for it sets up in the place of
the universal will, which is the source of sovereignty, its
own special trust.

As we arc talking ofjolitics we must also take the evils
into consideration. The unpleasant clfccts which the
setting up of the Gospel entails are so dangerous in a
Christian state that they completely destroy the social
unity, because the servants of the law and the servants of

20

MEMOIRS OF NAPOLEON I

the Church are not the same. The clergy aim at keeping
definite rules, a violation of the ruler’s commands. In
fact what Court of Law can decide which of two orders is
the unjust one ? “ Conscience,” is the answer given me.
But what directs conscience ? So you see that the State
is no longer a whole. Follow out this conclusion, and you
will see that the answer of Viscount d’Orthes varies with
regard to a Christian state. Think of the> influence which
the servants of the Church may have on the laws, all the
more as you advise even enlightened and virtuous clergy-
men not to run the risk of making a wrong choice. You
feel, too, that the Church has more influence than the
servants of the law. As, however, the servants of the
Chinch are never, or hardly ever, citizens, but only
servants, there must always be a conflict of duty.

I will not cite any great number of the contradictions
and inconsistencies into which Monsieur Roustan falls.
I have mentioned sufficient. In any case it is beyond
doubt that Christianity, even that of the Reformed
Churches, destroys the unity of the State. First, because
it diminishes the confidence that people must have in the
servants of the State, and, secondly, because in con-
sequence of its constitution, it forms a special society,
wmch appeals, not only to the heart of the citizen,
but often acts in opposition to the views of the Govern-
ment.

When I entered on my duties in Valence I was bored
m my garrison. I began to read novels, and took a lively
interest in the reading. I tried to write some myself, and
this occupation strengthened my imagination which
became mingled with the positive knowledge that I had
acquired. Often I indulged in day-dreams, in order to
measure my fancies by the compass of my intelligence.
I would set myself in imagination in an ideal world, I
would try to determine how far it differed from the real
world in which I found myself. I have always been fond
of analysis, and when I was in love with anything I used
to take my love to pieces, joint by joint. The why and
the wherefore are such useful questions that one cannot
ask them often enough. I conquered history rather than
studied it.

YOUTH, 17G9-1792

21

MV riRST FI.IRTATIOK

The time of my stay in Valence was on the wliolc
unattractive. And yet I still remember a harmless
flirtation with Mademoiselle Caroline du Colombicr at
her estate at Basscau. We used to make little appoint-
ments. I remember one especially. It was on a beautiful
summer morning. It will scarcely be considered credible,
perhaps, but our whole business consisted in eating some
cherries together.

In June 178G I took a trip to Dauphiny witli my friend
Dcs Mazis, and two months afterwards our regiment was
moved to Lyons, as a rising of the silk-weavers, a fore-
runner of the Revolution, had broken out there. I
remember I was dissatisfied with my quarters. I found
myself as if in a hell. My hosts would not let me go
out or come in without heaping attentions on me, and I
couldn’t get a moment to m)’sclf, to think. As one of my
comrades complained about his quarters, we c.'tchangcd,
and both of us were satisfied.

ItOME ONXE MORE

I could at last satisfy my longing for home. I obtained
six montlis’ leave, and, after an absence of seven yean and
nine months, I found myself again in the dear homeland.
I drank in deep draughts of freedom in die dear Island,
whose peculiar scent can be detected far out at sea.

I remember still with pride, that in my twendeth year
I was able to take part in a long journey wJu'cli Paoli took
to Pontenuovo. Paoli had a numerous following ; more
than five hundred of his adherents accompanied him on
horseback. I rode by the General’s side. On the way
Paoli explained to me die situations and the places where
hot fights had taken place and where war and freedom
had triumphed. He explained to me the famous struggle
from beginning to end, and my remarks caused him to
exclaim : “ Oh, Napoleon, you belong to the dme of
Plutarch 1 ”

My other recollections of my first revisiting Corsica
have grown quite dim in thq course of years, so that I
must make use of the notes that my brother Joseph svrote
down referring to diosc days :

22

MEMOIRS OF NAPOLEON I

“ Napoleon came, and that was a great happiness for
our mother and myself. The sight of the country delighted
him. He had the habits of a hard-working, zealously
studious young man, but he was quite different from the
man described by the author of his memoirs. At that
time he was a passionate admirer of Rousseau ; we lived
in an ideal world, as we called it. We liked the master-
pieces of Corneille, Racine, and Voltaire, from which we
used to recite daily. He possessed the works of Plutarch,
Plato, Cornelius Nepos, Livy, and Tacitus, in French
translations, besides those of Montaigne, Montesquieu,
and Raynal. All these books were in a trunk, which was
much larger than the one that contained his clothes.
I don’t deny that he had also the Poems of Ossian ; but
I absolutely deny that he preferred them to those of
Homer.”

Fortunately my leave was extended, for the affairs of
the family were in a bad way, and I resolved to go to
Paris in order to remind the Government of its obligations
to my family. But it was in vain. The Comptroller
General knew nothing about sums of money owing to
Bonaparte for the laying out of the mulberry tree nursery,
and I returned to Paris disheartened and depressed.

MY FIRST LOVE ADVENTURE IN PARIS

One day, coming from the Boulevard des Italiens, I
was walking up and down in the Palais Royal. As I was
struggling with violent emotions, I bore the cold with
indifference. But when the force of my imagination had
cooled down a little, I felt the severity of the weather, and
withdrew into the Galleries. I was standing on the
threshold of one of the iron gates when my eyes fell on a
female form. The advanced hour, her bearing, and her
tender youth, left no doubt in my mind that she was a
girl of the streets. I observed her, and she stopped, not
casting at me a challenging look, as the other women of
her profession are accustomed to do, but in a way that
corresponded to her decent appearance and manner.
.This circumstance made me hesitate. Her modesty
encouraged me, and I spoke to her — I who more than
anybody was convinced of the baseness of her profession,
I who, until then, had always felt myself besmirched by a

YOUTH, 17C9-1792 23

glance from such eyes. But her soft complexion, her
wcaUy build, and her pleasant voice cleared away any
hesitation in a moment. “ Ah,” I said to myself, “ cither
this will be a woman who will be useful for my observations,
or it is just a vain attempt.”

“ You are cold,” I said to her. “ How can you bear
walking up and down in this cold ? ”

“ Ah, sir, hope keeps me going, for I must finish my
evening, you knoiv."

The indifference with which she pronounced these
words, the phlegm of this answer interested me, and I
went ssnth her.

“ Your hc.alth is very poor, I wonder that your profession
docs not make it worse.”

“ Ah ! the deuce, sir, one must do something, you
know.”

“ That may be ; but isn’t there any other occupation
more suitable to your health ? ”

“ No, sir, one must live, you know.”

I was delighted, for I saw that, at least, she answered
my question. It ivas a success ssath whicli my previous
attempt had not alwap been ermmed.

“You arc probably from some northern country, as
you defy the cold so.”

“ I am from Nantes, from Brittany.”

“ I know that country.”

“ You must do me the pleasure. Mademoiselle, of
relating to me how you lost your innocence.”

“ An officer has robbed me of it.”

“ Are you sorry for it ? ”

“ Why, of course. You may be sure of that.”

At these words her voice took on a hardness that I had
not noticed in her till then.

“ You may be quite convinced of that. My sister is
well taken care of, why should I not be ? ”

“ Why have you come to Paris ? ”

“ The ofliccr svho seduced me, and whom I despise,
left me. I had to flee for fear of my mother’s anger. A
second one took me to Paris and left me too, and a third
with whom I lived for three years, did the same. Although
he is a Frenchman his business called him to London, and
he is there still — Come, let us go to your house.”

24 MEMOIRS OF NAPOLEON I

“ But what shall' we do there ? ”

“ Warm ourselves, and you shall then satisfy your,
desire.”

And that night, in a bare hotel room I knew a woman
for the first time.

ON PATRIOTISM

Five days after this meeting at the Palais Royal, on the
27th November, 1787, I composed a monologue on
patriotism, addressed to a lady acquaintance :

“ I have scarcely reached the age of eighteen, and I
already hold the key of history in my hand. I know my
weakness, but that is, perhaps, the best frame of mind in
which to compose this kind of writing. I possess that
enthusiasm which a deeper study of human nature often
destroys in our hearts. The venality of a riper age will
never smudge my pen. I breathe only truth, and I also
feel the strength to publish it. In the reading of this
sketch of aU our sufferings, I see, my dear fellow-country-
men, how your tears flow. Dear countrymen, we have
always been unhappy ! To-day, as members of a power-
ful monarchy, all we get from its Government is the
burden of its constitution, and perhaps, our troubles
continuing, it will be only in the course of centuries that
there will come a lessening of our misfortunes.”

MY FIRST CHALLENGE

During my first stay in Auxonne a comrade who lodged
in the room above me, had the bad habit of playing the
French horn. He made such a noise that it was impossible
to work. Meeting him on the stairs I said to him :
“ Well, my dear fellow, that blowing on the French horn
seems to tire you.” — “ Oh no ! Not at all.” — “ Well,
then, worry somebody else.” — “ I am sorry.” — “ In any
case you would do better to go somewhere else with your
blowing.” — “ I can do what I like in my own room.” —
‘‘That gives rise to quarrelling” — “ I don’t think anyone
W'ould dare.”

The consequence of this discussion was a challenge to
a duel. The officers’ Committee of Honour investigated
the case and decided that in future the one should do his

YOUTH, 17C9-1792 25

practice on the horn elsewhere, and that tlic other should
be more patient.

I Alt ENTRUSTED IVmi IMPORTANT WORK ON THE
ARTILLERY RANGE

I do not feel very well just at present owing to the heavy
work which I have been doing m the last few days. I am
in favour ivith General Du Tcil, so that he has set me the
task of erecting various constructions on the artillery
range. This work requires didicult calculations, so I have
been busy for ten d.ays without a break, and from morn-
ing till night, at the head of 200 men. This e-xtraordinary
sign of favour has set the captains against me somewiiat ;
as tliey assert tliat it is doing them .an injustice to entrust
a lieutenant with such important work. The other
subalterns, too, arc a little cmious ; but that will p.ass.
What worries me most is my health, wiiich docs not
appear to be any too strong. The sorrowful state of tlic
family also troubles me, all die more as I know no means
of improving it.

irv HEALTH IMPROVES— DISPUTES IN THE NATIONAL
ASSEMBLY

At last my restored health permits of my writing again
in fuller detail. The country here around Auxonne is
very unhealthy on account of the surrounding swamps
and the frequent overflowing of the river, which fills the
ditches svith pcstilcndal water. I have had a severe
intermittent fever, which, after having completely dis-
appeared for four dap, would attack me again for a
considerable time. This has weakened me very much, my
mind has been rvandering a good deal, and it was a long
time before I had quite recovered. Now that the weather
is better, and that the ice and snow have melted, and the
wind and fog disappeared, I am recovering visibly.

As it seems, discord has appeared in the Three Estates
(the National Assembly) and the Third Estate have
already won the victory witli the majority of deputies.
But this victory does not mean much unless it is obtained
by individual voting, and not by the Estates, which arc as
old as the monarchy itself. The clergy and nobility seem
determined to fight bravely for their ancient ' ■ and

26 MEMOIRS OF NAPOLEON I

privileges. Besides these general bickerings there isn’t a
province where four or five parties are not quarrelling on
various subjects. In any case the papers convening
Parliament have not yet been delivered, and the Estates
can, therefore, not assemble before May or June.

I have here no refuge but that of work. I change my
quarters every week, and sleep very little since my illness.
It is incredible ! I go to bed at ten and rise at four, and
take only one meal a day, which suits my health very well.

ON LOVE

In Auxonne, which I entered directly from Corsica on
the 1 2th of February, 1791, I went deeply into philo-
sophical considerations on love. I find in my papers the
following notes :

When a man lives in a foreign land, quite apart from
his parents and home, he needs — let no man deceive
himself — relationships, and a support, feelings, which
replace his father and brother. Then love comes to his
aid, in order to offer him tempting advantages. One
might say that friendship offers the same. Certainly, but
abroad a man feels himself more drawn towards women.
Hence it is that lonehness and imagination arouse passions
which prepare the ground for love. But what is love ?
It blooms in all seasons, contrary to the urge in animals
which stirs in them only at certain periods of the year.
Love is found in the icefields of Russia, in the heat of the
Equator, in the swamps of the Iroquois, in the shade of
Italian groves, in the forest of Ardennes, under the Sign of
the Lion as under that of the Bear.

What then is love ? It is the feeling of weakness, which
penetrates the lonely person, at the same time also the
feeling of his powerlessness and immortality. The heart
contracts, expands, beats stronger : sweet tears of passion
flow — ^that is love !

Notice a boy of thirteen. He loves his friend just as at
twenty he loves his sweetheart. It is only later that
egoism is developed. At forty a man loves his riches, and
at sixty himself only. But, make no mistake, when he
weeps he does it from vexation, if he falls into despair, it
is because that loneliness bores him which eventually
kills him. It is said that the sweet emotions which love

YOUTH, 1769-1792 27

brings forth, and the cunning shalh of Cupid arc poisoned,
but one feels happy in his pain, and doesn’t svant to be
cured of it. When a person has once tasted tlic c.\citc-
ment and enjoyment of love he dreads the frightful
loneliness of the heart and the emptiness of feeling. At a
ripe age people solace themselves for their cares by
distractions ; would you also like to heal the pangs of
love? Dull physician, arm yourself with courage, you arc
killing an innocent one. If you have feeling you ss-ill find
that the eartli opens itself.

One day a conversation took place between my friend
Dcs Mazis and mj’sclfon love.

Des hlazis : “ What sir I you ask what love is ? Arc
you not then like other men ? ”

I : I don't ask any explanation of love from you.

I, too, have been in love, and the recollection of it is still
strong enough so that I don’t need any c-itaggcratcd
defimdon of it ; for that only confuses things. I nave no
intention of denjang the existence of love. I consider it
destructive of society and of the personal happiness of
mankind, and, finally, I believe that love docs more harm
than good ; it would be simply a blessing of tlie gods if
the world svcrc rid of it.”

Dcs Mazis : “ What ? Love destructive of society 1
Love, which keeps all nature alive, svhich is the source of
all life and all happiness ? It would be better not to live
at all than to live svithout love.”

1 ; “ You arc simply getting excited, and passion
urges you on. Pray, understand your friend 1 Do not
look at me so scomiully, and tell me why. since you have
been under the spell of this passion, I no longer see
you in the company tvhcrc you were always to be found
formerly? Besides, what has become of your work?
Why do you neglect your relatives and friends? You
spend all your days in taking long, lonely walks, till the
hour strikes when you are favoured with the sight of
Adelaide.”

Des Mazis : “ Ah, what do I care about your social
meetings and your work ? What is the use of dry science
to me? What have things that happened a thousand
years ago to do with me ? What influence can I have on

28 MEMOIRS OF NAPOLEON I

the course of the stars ? What interest have I in all those
exact, childish discussions on mankind ? I have, of
course, formerly occupied myself with all these things,
but what better could I do then ? I had to drive away
boredom in some way or another. Still, believe me, I
used to feel, when at work, the emptiness of my heart.
My mind was often satisfied, it is true ; but my feelings ! . . .
O God ! I was simply vegetating till I fell in love. But
now everything is different. When the dawn rouses me
from sleep I no longer ask myself : Why is the sun shining
for me to-day ? No ! The first ray shows me my darling
Adelaide in her morning dress. In my mind I see her
thinking of me and smiling at me. Yesterday evening she
squeezed my hand ; she sighed, and our eyes met. How
excellently well she understood how to give expression
to our feelings. I kept looking at her picture, which
enraptures me. I take it out a hundred times, in order to
hold it in my hand. And those walks, sir, which seem to
you so dreary, oh, they are a thousand times more recrea-
tive than a voyage round the world. First, I call to mind
all the things that Adelaide has whispered to me, then I
read again the letter that she last wrote me . . . every-
thing that concerns her is holy in my eyes. ...”

I : “I laugh at all these things which hold your soul in
bondage, but I laugh still more at the enthusiasm with
which you relate them to me. What a strange malady
has taken hold of you ! I see that the common sense that
I must call to your help, can make no impression, and
that, in the mad condition in which you find yourself, you
will not merely close your eyes to all objections, you will
simply scorn them. Rernember, you do not possess a
cool temperament, and that my friendship will always
recall you to your duties. Remember that I have always
shown myself your friend, who was worthy of you. I
should now really count up everything that you owe me,
and how often I have given you proofs of my friendly
feelings ; for I am not protected against the insults which
you might do me in your madness : your condition is
that of a sick person who sees only phantoms . . . sleep-
less nights, untasted meals, not a spot on the earth where
your restlessness can find recovery. Your blood is boiling,
you walk up and down with long strides, and your eyes

YOUTH, 1765-1792 29

have a far-away look. My poor friend ! Can that be
happiness ?

If the time came to defend your country what would
you do in the matter? Of what use arc you ? Do you
think one would entrust a child who is ahrays crying, who
is always cither in joy or in sorrow, according to the
emotions of another person, with the well-being of his
fcllow-mcn? Do you think they would confide the
secrets of the State to a man who has no will-power ? ”

Dcs Mazis : “ Why, tliosc arc only big, but hollow
words ! What have your State and your secrets to do
with me ? You are rc.ally unbearable to-day ! I have
never heard you condemn so senselessly.”

I : “ Ah, sir, what have the State, your fellow-citizens,
and society to do with you ? There we have the con-
sequences of a heart given over to sensuousness. No
strength and no virtue on your life’s path. Oh, I pity
your error 1 What ! You think that Jove is the road to
virtue ? No, it hinden it at every step. Do be sensible ! ”

UNEjJUAZ, DIVISION OF THE WORLD’S GOODS

A man inherits witli his birth rights the productions
of tlic earth necessary to Ids maintenance. After the
follies of youth comes the awakerdng of the passions :
after one has selected a playmate one proceeds to the
choice of a companion for life. Tlic strong arm of the
husband, and his needs, demand work. He looks round
and secs that the land is divided among a few, and serves
only luxury and superfluity. Then he asks himself:
what are the privileges of these people ? Why does the
man who does nothing possess everything, and the work-
ing man almost nothing ? Why have they left nothing to
him who has a svife, an old father, and an old mother to
support? The lasvgivcrs have shut out of society the
ownerless, and those who do not pay certain taxes. Why
this injustice ? Doubtless from political reasons ! But
how does that look in the framework of mankind ? If I
saw one of these unfortunate people transgressing the law
1 would say to myself at the sight of this worried being :
“ The strong man wears out the weak one.” You should
say to the rich : “ You possess everything, and those
people have nothing. Your destiny is the same, only

30 MEMOIRS OF NAPOLEON I

with this differ ence, that you, the wiser, can obtain
redress and remedy, while the other can only sigh.
Unfeeling man, is your heart never touched ? I pity and
despise you.”

ON THE ENJOYMENT OF LIFE

We have been created to enjoy life. Life’s happiness
consists really in suiting the enjoyments of life to our
natural disposition. And so we are born to be happy.
We are continually having pleasant experiences and
unpleasant experiences, and no one can deny that the
latter are repugnant to nature, and therefore cause us to
avoid all unpleasantnesses, just as we have recourse to
medicine in order to restore our health. In all ranks in
life we have sensations, the working man the same as the
prince, only in different circumstances.

Now, in what does the enjoyment of life consist ? In
order to understand it one must try to read his own heart.
In animals we can only see that they have the wish to eat,
and yet animals seem to be capable of various passions :
the dog is famed for his fidelity, the cow seems to feel pity,
the elephant is grateful, and so on. But all these qualities
of the mind seem to have been acquired only after a very
long habit. It is, therefore, difficult to deny that an
animal’s instinct is a lower form of our own. But this
instinct is not sufficiently developed to produce ideas,
they have only experiences, which they use in a practical
way, to rid themselves of their enemies and provide for
their maintenance.

If a child, for instance, wishes to seize an object on the
other side of the table, and sees that is impossible, he will
go round the table a second time in order to approach the
object more directly. A horse that happens to be in one
meadow will go into another. It runs directly towards it,
but, finding a wall that hinders its intention, goes along
the wall till it finds an opening. The second time it goes
direct to the opening. That is, therefore, progress acquired
by experience. The birds build their nests, as they have
been building them for thousands of years. The bees do
the same.

Man, on the other hand, has spiritual needs besides his
physical ones. Eating, it is true, is the first law of all

YOUTH, 1769-1792 31

creatures, but man has an advantage over the animals in
taUng less time over it, as is also tlic case in digestion and
sleep.

\Vhat, however, is the chief occupation of man ? Life
brings him desire and pain, as a result of his passions,
svithout which he would have neither the one nor the
otlier, and consequently would be the unhappiest creature
in tlie world. Ah ! more than that, he would not be a
human being at all. The ability to compare while
observing and thinking creates all the qualities that he
possesses. As a physical being a man must cat, as a
psychical being he must control himself. And what docs
this control consist in ? It consists in directing his inclina-
tions, his spiritual qu.alitics in sucli a way that each of
them may contribute to his happiness.

Physical maintenance is the first law of nature ; the
desire to be happy, the second. What is happiness ? It
is the reason sAy we arc on this earth, that is, the real
enjoyment of life.

Half the world is ambitious and seeks happiness in
getting honour. The love of fame arouses in them the
wish to command and to defy every danger. Lust and
avarice strive after riches ; love demands the passion of a
svoman, charity desires the amelioration of want, the man
of leisure longs for work.

RErUDLIC OR MONARCHY

For a long time I have had a taste for public affairs.
If an unprejudiced public tvritcr could have any un-
certainty as to his preference for a republic or a monarchy,
I believe that his doubts would soon be cleared up to-day.
Republicans arc insulted and tlircatcned, and the only
reason given is that republicanism is impossible in France.
In reality the oratorical defenders of the monarchy have
contributed much to its fall, for after having indulged in
all kinds of useless analysis, they always say that the
republican form of government is impossible because it is
impracticable.

1 have read all the writings of the monarchist speakers.

I have perceived in them the greatest efforts to ciefend a
bad case. They make assertions which they cannot prove.
Really if I had had doubts, tlic reading of their speeches

32 MEMOIRS OF NAPOLEON I

would have scattered them. They assert that 25 million
people cannot live as republicans. Without good morals
no republic !

When one asserts that 25 million people cannot live
together as republicans, it is nothing but an unpolitical
form of speech.

RUMOURS OF WAR (1792)

For some months we are wondering whether we shall
have war. I have always answered no ! One part of
Europe is governed by princes who rule over men, the
other part by sovereigns who command cattle and horses.
The former understand the Revolution perfectly, and
would gladly make financial sacrifices to suppress it, but
they never dare to raise the mask of fear, lest the fire
should also spread amongst themselves . . . one has only
to look at the history of England, Holland, etc.

But as for the rulers who govern horses, they cannot
understand the coherence of the constitution, and they
despise it. They think that this chaos of connecting ideas
is bringing about the downfall of France. According to
their speeches one would think that our brave country-
men were destroying each other in order to cleanse their
blood from their crime against the princes. They think
further that the patriots wdll then bow their heads deeper
than ever before the bishop’s mitre, before the imprisoned
fakir (Louis XVI), and especially before the rascals who
boast of their titles to nobility. But these princes keep
quiet. They are only waiting for the moment in which
civil war will break out, which, according to them and
their dull ministers, must inevitably happen.

CRITICAL CONDITION IN PARIS

Yesterday, the 27th of May, 1792, I arrived in Paris
and have taken up my quarters provisionally in the hotel
where Pozzo di Borgo, Leonetti, and Peraldi are staying,
namely, in the “Hotel des Patriotes Hollandais” in the
Rue Royale. But it is too expensive, and I shall move
to-day or to-morrow.

Paris is in a state of the greatest excitement. It is crowded
with foreignersj and the number of the discontented is
very great. Already for three nights the city has been

Chnrlcs-Mmiricc tic Tnllc>nin<l, Prince of Bcncvcnlo
I rom n Dranint; In C Vi>(;oI

YOUTH, 1769-1792 33

lighted up. Tile National Guard at the Tuilcries has
been doubled, in order to protect the King. They arc
trying to improve the corps of tlic Household Troops
which is said to be very badly organised. The same news
continues to come from the Irontiers. Probably the
people arc assembling in order to take the defensive.

Among the officers desertion is the order of the day.
Tile situation is in every way critical.

I am going to the Legislative Assembly to-day for the
fint time. Its reputation is not so high as that of the
Constituent Assemoly, but what is there left ?

This country is, in the true sense of the word, tom to
pieces by the most violent partisanship, and it is very
diflicult to hold the threads of the various plans of the
parties. Wiat turn events will take I know not ; any-
how, it looks very like revolution.

During my present stay I have been working hard at
astronomy. It is a fine distraction, and a magnificcntscicncc.
Witli my mathematical knowledge I have little difiiculty
in mastering this science. I have gained much from it.

Tin: kino’s iNXREmnu: weakness
The day before yesterday, the eotli of June, 1792,
seven to eight Oiousand men, armed ivith pikes, a-xes,
swords, muskets, spears, and sharpened stakes, marched
to tlic Legislative Assembly in order to hand in a petition.
Then they betook themselves to the King. The garden of
the Tuilcries was closed, and guarded by 15,000 National
Guards. Tlie crowd tore down the gates, penetrated into
the palace, and pointed cannon at the King’s apartments ;
they broke in four doors, and offered the King two
cockades, a red one and a tricolour, and left him the
choice. “ Choose,” they told him, “ whether you will
reign here or in CobIcnee.” The King showed himself
and put on the red Jacobin cap. The Queen and the
royal princes did the same. Then the King had to drink
tvitli the mob. The crowd were in the palace for four
hours. This provided the news-sheets with ample material
for their aristocratic declarations. Yet this is all very
contrary to the Constitution and is a dangerous example.
In such stormy conditions it is hard to foresee what fate
is in store for France.

34

MEMOIRS OF NAPOLEON I

I AM A SPECTATOR OF THE STORMING OF THE TUILERIES

On tliat horrible lotli of August, 1792, I happened to
be in Paris, and ^vas lodging in tlie Rue du Mail near the
Place des Victoires. "When the noise of the attack became
audible, and tlie ne^NT came tliat tliey ^vere storming tlie
Tuileries, I hastened to find Fauvelet, Bourrienne's
brother, at tlie Place du Carrousel, ^vhere he had a
furniture shop. From this house I could quiedy obseiTe
all the events of the day. Before I got to die Place du
Carrousel I met a horrible gi'oup of men in die Rue des
Petits Champs ^\ilO ivere carr^dng about a head on die
point of a pike. As diey saw that I was fairly 'well dressed,
and took me for a ‘‘ Monsieur,” they came up to me to
make me shout “ Long live the Nation,” which, one may
be sure, I did ^\idlOut difficulty.

The palace ’ivas attacked by die lowest scum. The
King certainly had as many ti'oops for his defence as we
had later on, on the I3di Venddmaire, and die enemies of
die Convention "were much better trained and much
more formidable. The majority of the National Guard
showed diemselves to be on the Kang’s side. Tliis justice
must be done them,

'Wdien the Palace had been taken and the King had
betaken himself to the Legislative Assembly, I 'vveiit into
the garden of the Tuileries. It seemed to me as if I sa-\s’
more corpses diere dian I have seen siace on my batde-
fields. Eidier it was oising to die smallness of the space,
or it ^vas because such a sight had never met my eyes
before. I sa'w 'well-dressed women beha\*ing in a dis-
graceful way to^vards the bodies of die S^^'iss. I wsited
all the coffee houses in the neighbourhood of the National
Assembly ; ever\^vhere the excitement ^vas great, and
rage %vas to be seen on all faces, aldiough diese people did
not belong to the ^vorking classes at aU.

ON THE FRENCH REVOLUTION

At the beginning die Revolution took its course during
die leadcrsliip of Louis XVI. The great mistakes of die
Tlircc Estates, the e\il counsels of foreigners, but especially
the false adwce of England, which* knew better than

YOUTH, 1769-1792 35

anybody what an advantage France was gaining througli
real liberty, destroyed tlie 6ne bepnning.

Tile events of the 5th and Gth of October, 1789, were by
no means the work of France. The King was besieged in
his Palace, was subjected to abuse by the mob of Paris,
until he at last gave way in order to save himself and his
family. During the m'ght, amid tlie howls of the cannibals,
he w.as brought back to Paris. From this moment he was
the prisoner of the Revolution. While he w.ts being
greeted as King of the French he was made to endure the
sufferinm of Christ. He accepted the Constitution which
he should have granted. His flight to Varennes was the
greatest mistake that he could make, even if it had been
successful. The party considered it as an act of trcachciy,
and from that day the death of the unhappy monarch
was a foregone conclusion, and the fall of the throne was
resolved on in secret. The Emigrants’ Assembly in
Coblcncc, tlie Congress of Pillnitz, Prussia’s ridiculous
war, the still more ridiculous retreat of the Prussian Army
before our unorganised troops, c.\cited the revolutionary
rage to the highest point, and France went suddenly over
from the rule of the Constituent Assembly to that of the
Convention, from the Revolution to the Reign of Terror.

The French Revolution was a general rising of the
people against the privileged classes. Its masterpiece was
the destruction of all privileges, the abolition of the
jurisdiction of the feudal lords, the suppression of the
remnant of the old-time serfdom, the proclamation of
liberty to the skies. France had been gradually formed
from the union of countries which had passed under the
Crown Domain either through inheritance or conquest.
There were no natural boundaries to the provinces ; they
were unlike in e.xtent and in population, and were ruled
by laws and customs in accordance with the administrative
rights of the citizens. It teas not a state but a union of
several states loosely joined togctlier. The Revolution,
which was essentially directed by the principles of liberty,
destroyed also tlie last traces of the Feudal System. It
created a new France with a homogeneous division of
territories which accorded witli local conditions. Every-
where the same judicial and administrative organisation
reigned, the same civil and criminal laws, the same

36 MEMOIRS OF NAPOLEON I

system of taxation. The upheavals which the operation
of the Revolution brought about in individuals and their
property were as great as those which the maxims of the
Revolution itself eifected. The new France gave the world
the singular spectacle of 25 million souls, who, all of equal
rank, were governed by the same laws, the same rule, and
the same regulation. And all these changes were in
harmony with the good of the people, with its rights,
with the progress of civilisation.

CHAPTER II

AS A YOUNG GENERAL OF THE REVOLUTION, 1793-1795
MY FIRST DEED OP ARMS AT TOULON

M y ofTicial career began at the siege of Toulon.
I then twenty-four years of age, and, as an
officer of an old corps which enjoyed a certain
reputation, I was sent to this siege. On this occasion I
cidiibitcd for the first time those military talents which,
since then, have gained such great renown for the French
Army. I personally took pnsoner General O’Hara, the
officer in command at Toulon. In November 1793 this
General, at the head of Gooo men, had made a sally in
order to capture a French battery wbich had been bom-
barding the Malbousquct Fort. The attack was successful,
and they spiked the guns that they found. The General
commanding the French, Dugommicr, put himself at the
head of his troops, whilst I, as commander of the artillery
— I was already called his right-hand man at the time —
caused some guns to be placed on different hills, in order
to cover the retreat and to dispute the land with the
English, in ease the enemy General should try to c.\tcnd
his success as far as Ollioulcs and take possession of the
large parks of garrison artillery belonging to the French
Army which were set up a little in front of this village.
When this task svas completed I svent over to one of the
heights lying opposite to the lost battery, and occupied at
that moment by our troops, and svith a battalion of
400 men I crept along a trench covered with olive branches,
which led to the height where the battery was. This
trench had been dug in order to bring up powder and
other provisions. In this way I reached the foot of the
battery svithout being discovered, and from there I
directed a violent fire from right and left on the English
and Neapolitans who were occupying the battery, without
it being possible for them to know whence this firing
37

38 MEMOIRS OF NAPOLEON I

came. An English officer, whom we then took for a
colonel, climbed on to the breastwork to see whence this
strange attack was coming. A non-commissioned officer
of the French battalion fired at him and fractured his
arm. The officer we took for a colonel, and who turned
out to be General O’Hara himself, rolled to the foot of the
battery which was on the side of the French. The soldiers
threw themselves on him and would have killed him.
Thereupon I hastened up, seized him with my own hand,
and rescued him in this critical situation from all further
harm and insult. As I gave him back his sword the
English General told me his name and rank. Further,
I used my influence in seeing that he was treated in a way
becoming a man of his rank, contrary to the inhuman
methods of treatment then used against the English. On
account of this exploitT was made a colonel, and after the
taking of Toulon I was raised to the rank of Brigadier-
General.

1 GET THE SCURVY

At this siege I was attacked by a horrible disease — the
scurvy. I happened to be close to a battery of two guns.
One of the English sloops approached the shore, fired,
and killed two gunners at my side. I picked up a ramrod
just as it had fallen from the warm hand of one of the
dead men. The man had been suffering from disease, as
was shown afterwards, and a few days later I too was
seized with a stubborn attack of scurvy. I took baths and
recovered. But, as I took very little care of myself, I got
it again five years later in Italy, and also in Egypt. On
my return from there Corvisart cured me of it by putting
three blisters on my chest which brought about a change
for the better. Before that time, I was sallow and lean,
but since then I have always been very well.

I AM TO JUSTIFY MYSELF IN PARIS

The People’s Representative in Marseilles, Meynier,
had asked me, at the beginning of the year 1794, to sketch
a plan to protect the arsenal of the town from a coup de
main. I therefore sketched out a plan. Soon afterwards,
however, a report was made attacking the Artillery
Commission in Marseilles who had been slanderously

GENERAL OF THE REVOLUTION, 1793-1795 39

accused of wishing to build a Bastille against tlic patriots.
An order from tlie Convention required them to appear
before its bar. The commanding otTiccr in Marseilles,
Sugny, informed me that the matter concerned me, and
that 1 must go to Paris. 1 replied that the order concerned
the otliccr in command at Marseilles, and not me ; that
he must go to Paris and explain that the plan was not his.
He did it, too. The result was another decree against me,
but the younger Robespierre wrote to his brother in my
favour, and I was left in peace.

THE UNSUCCESSFUL EXPEDITION TO CORSICA
After the siege of Toulon 1 was appointed to the com-
mand of the artillery in the army in Italy, and was,
" ' ■ ■■ ■ ■ il leader of this army. The

to France, Saorgio, Oneglia,

, t -a. In October I conducted
in like manner the movements of this army on the
Bormida, at Dego, and at Savona.

In February 1795, I was in command of the artillcre of
the sea expedition at Toulon, which was intended first,
for Corsica, and then for Rome. 1 made the proposal
that the fleet of transports should not put out to sea until
the French fleet had compelled the English to go away.
The consequence of this w.as the engagement off Livorno,
where the battleship Ca ira was taken, and the return of
the French fleet to the harbour. During this time, owing
to my influence with the gunners, I succeeded in suppress-
ing a rising in the arsenal ; by this action I saved the
lives of the People’s Representatives, Mariette and
Chambon.

AN INCIDENT FROM THE MOUNTAIN WARFARE

When women arc bad they arc worse than men, and
have a much greater inclination to commit crime. When
the sex, gentle by nature, has once sunk, it falls much
deeper than ours. Women arc always either very much
better, or very much worse than men.

When I was in command at tlic Pass of Tenda, a very
hilly and difficult region, where the army had to march
over a narrow bridge in order to get through, I had given
the order that no woman svas to be allowed to follow, ?'

40 MEMOIRS OF NAPOLEON I

the duties were laborious, and required the troops to be
always on the alert. In order to assure the execution of
this order I had placed two captains on the bridge, and
had ordered them, on pain of death, to allo'iv no woman
to cross it. I went to the bridge myself in order to con-
vince myself that my orders were being obeyed, and found
a crowd of women assembled there. When they saw me
they heaped abuse on me, shouting : “ Ah ! It is you,
httle corporal, who have given the order not to let us
cross the bridge.” I was called “ little corporal ” in the
army at that time. Afterwards I was astonished to find,
some leagues further on, a considerable number of women
with the troops. I immediately ordered the two captains
to be arrested, and brought to me, for I was determined
to condemn them on the spot. They assured me, how-
ever, of their innocence, and insisted that no woman had
passed over the bridge. I therefore caused some of these
ladies to be brought before me, and to my great astonish-
ment they admitted that they had emptied a fe^v barrels
containing certain provisions for the army, had hidden in
them, and in this way had got over unnoticed.

I GO TO PARIS

In May 1795, on the recommendation of Aubry, I was
placed on the fist of infantry generals, in order to serve in
that capacity in the army at Vendee. That was only to
last until there was a vacancy in the artillery. I therefore
went to Paris, and refused to serve in the army in Vendee.
About ten days later our army of Italy was compelled to
retreat, as KeUerman had been defeated on the Italian
Riviera. The Committee of Safety,” which, at that
time, consisted of Sieyes, Le Tourneur, and Pontecoulant,
commissioned me to work out the plans for the army in
Italy. Soon after came the 13th Vendemaire, and I
became General-in-Chief of the army in the interior of
Paris.

irV FIRST ATTEMPT AT SUICIDE

%Vhen in Paris, in the spring of 1795, I found myself in
that very unpleasant frame of mind, when the brain almost
ceases to function, and makes life appear as an insupport-
able burden. My mother had just admitted to me her

GENERAL OF THE REVOLUTION, 1793-1795 41

frightful condition. As a result of the Corsican Civil ^Var
she had fled to Mancilles, and there found herself without
any means of support. She possessed notliing but her
wonderful character to defend the honour of her daughters
from want and corruption of every kind which had
risen from the loss of morals in that social chaos. I had
only one worthless draft. Through the vile action of
Representative Aubry I had been deprived of my pay,
and had no income of any kind. I liad gone out and
felt misclf suddenly carried away by a kind of animal-
like instinct to destroy mj-sclf. I slouched along the
Embankment. It is true 1 felt my weakness, but could
not conquer it. A few moments later I would perhaps
have thrown myself into the water, when, by chance, I
met a man in plain working-men’s clothes. When he
recognised me he fell on my neck, calling out : “ Is it
really you, Napoleon? What a pleasure to see you
again 1 ” It was Dcs Mazis, my old comrade in the
artillery. He had left the country, and had returned, in
disguise, to see his old motlicr, and was about to start on
his return journey.

“\yhat is the matter?" he asked me. “You arc not
listening, and arc not glad to see me again 1 What
misfortune have you met with ? You quite give the
impression of a fool who is about to kill himself.”

This direct appeal to the mood which was mastering
me produced a regular revolution in me, and, svithout
taking time to reflect, I told him everything.

“ If that is all,” said he, and svith these words, opening
his shabby jacket, he drew out a belt and put it into my
hand. “ There arc 30,000 francs in gold. Take them
and save your mother.”

Although even to-day I can’t account for my action,
I took the gold, and ran away in order to send it to my
mother. Only svhen I no longer held it in my hand did
I reflect on what I had just done. In all haste I returned
to the spot where I had left Dcs Mazis, but he had dis-
appeared. For several day’s I went out in the morning,
and only returned at night. I looked in every place
where I thought I might find him. But all my searches
at that time, and all those I made later on, after I had
ascended the throne, proved vain. It was only

42 MEMOIRS OF NAPOLEON I

the end of the Empire that by chance I found Des Mazis
once more. Now it was my turn to question him, and to
ask him what he thought of my strange behaviour, and
why I had heard nothing more of him for fifteen years.
He had behaved like myself, he said. As he had not
needed money, he had not asked for any, although he
was convinced that it would not embarrass me to pay it
back. Moreover, he had feared that I would force him to
come out of the retirement in which he lived so happily,
occupied with his gardening. I had infinite trouble in
persuading him to accept an imperial repayment of
300,000 francs for the 30,000 francs that he had lent me
as a brother-officer. Against his will I forced him to
accept the post of general manager of the State Gardens,
with a salary of 30,000 francs per annum, and the rank of
Officer of my Household. I also gave his brother a very
good post.

Two of my comrades from the military school and
from my old regiment, with whom I felt the most sym-
pathy since my youth, Des Mazis and Phelipeaux, have,
by some mysterious providence, exercised an enormous
influence on my destiny. Des Mazis, as I have just said,
saved me from suicide, and Phelipeaux held me back
before Akka (Acre). If it had not been for him I would
have been master of the key to the Orient, I would have
marched to Constantinople, and would have restored the
Eastern Empire.

\

PARIS REVIVES

After the fall of Robespierre, luxury, pleasure, and the arts
got the upper hand again in Paris, and in an astonishing
manner. On the i ith of July, 1 795, a benefit performance
of Phadra was given in the Opera House for a former
actress. Although the prices of tickets had been raised
threefold, an enormous crowd of people were already
waiting at two o’clock in the afternoon. _ Society people
appeared once more on the scene in their equipages, or,
better, they only remembered now, as in a long dream,
that there had been a time when they had^ ceased to
shine. Active, industrious life reigned in the libraries, in
the historical, chemical, botanical, and astronomical
lectures. Every means was employed to provide amuse-

GENERAL OF THE REVOLUTION, 1793-1795 43

mcnt for the people, and to make life pleasant. People
were dragged from their sorrotvful brooding ; how could
one ^dcld to gloomy presentiments in all this expenditure
of mind, in all tins wild rcvclrj'? Ladies were every-
where ; in the theatres, on the promenades, and in tlic
libraries. Charming figures were to be seen in the studios
and workrooms of the learned and the scientists. Of all
countries in the world it is here that w'omcn deserve to be
at Uic helm. Therefore men went crazy over them,
tliought of nothing else, and lived through them and for
them. A woman only needs to spend six montlis in Paris
in order to know ivhat is her due, and what a kingdom
belongs to her !

THE COUP d’Etat of the igTii vendEsiaire

On the evening of the nth VendEmairc of the year V
(the 4th October, 1795), I was in the “ Council of Forty,”
of which Cambac&S w.ts president, when the intentions
of the Secdons were made manifest. Everybody trembled
and nodded to show that they understood. Sieyis
approached me and said : “ While they arc consulting
the Sections will overthrow everything ; use your brain,
and just shoot boldly.” I had handed over the People’s
Representative, Flinten, and they .asked what they were to
do svith him. When I told them that tlicy should defend
themselves with him, and in this way increase the
defenders by 150 men, they understood that they were in
danger.

The movement of the 13th Vendemaire was directed by
Royalist leaders. One of them, Danican by name, sent
a man to p.Trlcy, who was brought blindfolded into
meeting of the Council of Forty. But all the members
begged him to recommend his General to stand by the
Republic. It was resolved that, in ease of our defeat, we
should retire to Tours.

The next morning at live o’clock the People’s
Representative, Barras, was appointed General-in-Chief of
the Army of the Interior, svith myself as deputy.

The artillery park was still in the camp at Sablons and
was guarded by only 150 men. The remainder was at
Marly with 200 men. I asked for an officer of the
2ist Chasseurs. Murat offered liimself, and 1 sent him at

44 MEMOIRS OF NAPOLEON I

a gallop to Sablons, to take away the artillery park. It
was high time, for the Sections soon appeared in order to
seize it. Murat attacked them at once, and in this way
I learned to know him. I also saw Lemarois there for the
first time.

The powder magazine at Meudon was without any
special protection. The Feuillans only possessed four
guns without gunners, and 80,000 cartridges. The
provision stores were scattered over the whole of Paris.
In various Sections the drums were beating for the general
march. The Section of the “ Theatre ffan9ais ” had
pushed their outposts as far as the Pont Neuf, which was
barricaded.

General Verdier, who was in command at the Palais
National, was manoeuvring with great sldll ; he was to
fire only in case of absolute necessity.

In the meantime, reports were coming from all sides
that the Sections were arming, assembling, and forming
columns. I therefore had the troops posted so as to
defend the Convention, and divided up the artillery to
drive back the rebels. At the former monastery of the
Feuillans I placed some cannon in order to be able to
sweep the Rue Saint-Honore : eight-pounders stood at
every outlet. For the sake of safety I held some guns in
reserve, in order to open a flank fire on the columns, in
case they should force an approach. Finally I had three
howitzers placed in the Place du Carrousel, in order to
sweep the houses from which the rebels might shoot at
the Convention building.

At four o’clock the rebels came in masses out of the
streets to form columns of attack. At this very critical
moment it was difficult, even for seasoned troops, to keep
from shooting, for it was the blood of Frenchmen that
would flow. We wanted to make the unfortunate wretches,
who were already criminals through their insurrection,
fratricides as well, by allowing them to attack.

At about a quarter to five the rebels had assembled.
From all sides they began their forward push, but were
everywhere beaten back. French blood flowed, but the
Sections were responsible for the crime and the disgrace
of that day. Among the dead we recognised mostly
emigres i landowners, and nobles. From the prisoners it

GENERAL OF THE REVOLUTION, 1793-1795 45

w’as proved that they were Chouans in Uic first place, and
consequently followers of Charettc.

The Sections did not, however, yet consider themselves
beaten. Tlicy had fled to the Cliureh Saint Roche, to
the Thdatre dc la Rdpublique, and the Egalitd Palace.
Everywhere they were heara in their tsTatli urging the
inhabitants to take up arms. In order to avoid bloodshed
on the follouing day, we dared not give them time to
assemble, but had to pursue them with vigour, and prevent
a fight taking place in a district difficult of approach.

I ordered General Montchoisy, who was with his
rcscrs'cs on the Place dc la Rdvolution, to form a column
which s\-as to march from the Boulevard with two guns,
tlius avoiding tlic Place Vendfime, to establish a connection
with the troops which were with the General Staff, and to
return in close formation. General Brunc marched with
two mortars from the streets Saint-Nicaisc and Saint-
Honord. General Cartaux sent 200 men and a gun of his
division through the street Saint-Thomas-du-Louvre, in
order to come out on the Place Palais-Egalild.

Tlic hone on which I sat w.as killed by a bullet. IMicn
I had mounted another I repaired to the Fcuillan
monastery.

The troops now began to move. Saint-Roch and the
“ Tlidatrc dc la Rdpublique ” svcrc taken. The rebels
now retired to the end of the Rue de la Loi, and barricaded
themselves on all sides. Their positions were successfully
bombarded the whole night.

At daybreak I learned that some students of the Saintc-
Genevidve quarter were matching with two guns to the
assistance of the rebels. I sent against them a troop of
Dragoons wliich took the guns from them and brought
them back to the Tuilcrics.

In spite of that a few Sections still held out. They had
barricaded the streets of the Grcnelle Section and placed
their cannon in the main streets. At nine o’clock General
Berruyer marched with his division to the Place Vendome
and pointed his tsvo guns from the Rue des Vieux-
Augustins on to the head-quarters of the “ Lc Pelletier ”
Section. General Vachort turned to the right. On the
Place de la Victoire General Brune placed two mortars at
the end of the Rue Vivienne, and General Duvigicr

46 MEMOIRS OF NAPOLEON I

marched with his column of 600 men and two guns to the
Rue Saint-Roch and Montmartre. But as the Sections
were losing courage, for they were afraid of their retreat
being cut off, they evacuated their positions.

The “ Brutus ” Section still gave some trouble, for they
had made prisoner the wife of one of the deputies. I
therefore ordered General Duvigier to march along the
Boulevard as far as the Rue Poissonniere, General Berruyer
to take up his position on the Place de la Victoire, and I
myself occupied the Pont-au-Change.

After the “ Brutus ” Section had been disarmed our
troops marched to the Place de la Greve. Everywhere
the real patriots had taken courage again ; from every
place the emigrisj armed with daggers, had disappeared,
and the people were recovering from their attack of crazy
folly and error. Finally, we disarmed next day the “ Le
Pelletier ” Section, and that of the “ Theatre fran9ais.”

HOW I MADE THE ACQUAINTANCE OF JOSEPHINE
BEAUHARNAIS

After the 13th Vendemaire, one morning my adjutant
Lemarois informed me that the son of Madame Beau-
harnais, whose husband had been guillotined when a
general, was in my ante-room, and wanted to speak to
me. He said he was a handsome boy. I called him in,
whereupon he told me that his motlier had kept liis
father’s sword, but that it had been taken from her when
the Sections had been disarmed. He asked me to return
the weapon to him. I granted his request, and sent
Lemarois with him to his Section to carry out his wish.
On the following day Madame Beauharnais had her name
written in my visitors’ book, and a few days afterwards
she came herself. I now instructed Lemarois to pay her
a visit. He was very well received, and informed me that
Madame Beauharnais was a beautiful lady, and very nice,
and that she oi\med the house in which she lived. I tlien
left my card, and was shordy afterwards invited to dinner.
In her house I met some well-kno\\Ti Society people, among
others die Duke of Nivernois, Madame Talhen, EUviou ;

I think diat Talma was there too. She treated me as a
very distinguished guest, made me sit next to her at table,
and drew me out ititii all kinds of teasing. For my part

GENERAL OF THE REVOLUTION 1793-1795 47

I invited licr to dine with me, Barms also being present.
At last things took their course in such fashion that we
fell in love with each other. B.arras did me a service by
advising me to marry Josephine. He assured me that she
belonged both to the old and the nciv Society, and that
this fact tvould bring me more support ; that her house
was the best in Paris, and would rid me of my Corsican
name ; finally, that through this marriage I should
become quite French. Hortensc tvould not hear of the
marriage, for at that time the generals were described as
“ Dealers in laced uniforms.” Engine, on the other hand,
svished for the marriage, for he was already looking
fonrard to becoming my adjutant.

Josephine was at that time a very agreeable lady, full of
charm, a lady in the true sense of the word. At first she
would always ansrver : “ No,” in order to take time to
reflect. Afterwards she said : “ Ah, yes, sir ! ” She lied
almost continually, but in a very clever way. I can say
that I loved the lady very much. She understood me
very well, and never asked anything for her children.
She never asked for money, but made debts in millions.
She had bad teeth, but she svas so clever that one never
noticed it at all. She would have been avactly the right
person to accompany me to Elba.

CHAPTER III

ONWARDS TO FAME, 1796-1797

THE FIRST PHASE OF MY CAMPAIGN IN ITALY, MONTENOTTE,
MILLESIMO, COSSERIA, DEGO, MONDOVI, CHERASCO

I ENTERED Nice on the 26th of March, 1796. The
condition of the army, as General Scherer had
reported, was worse than any force of imagination
whatever can depict it. The provision of bread was not
assured, and there had been no meat rations for a long
time. For transport purposes there were only 200 mules
available, and we could not think of sending forward
more than t^velve cannon. Things were getting worse
every day. There was not a moment to be lost, for the
army could no longer live where it was, but had either to
advance or retreat.

I therefore gave the army the order to march. My
intention was to surprise the enemy at the very beginning
of the campaign, and to stun liim by brilliant and decisive
success.

The head-quarters, which, since the beginning of the
war had never left Nice, now received instructions to
move to Albenga. Then I held a review of the troops,
and said : “ Soldiers ! You are half-naked, and badly
clothed. The authorities find much fault with you, and
yet can give you nothing. Your patience, and the courage
you show amid these rocks are admirable, but you are not
getting any fame. I will lead you into the most fruitful
plains in the world. Rich provinces and great cities
shall be in your possession, and then you will have wealth,
honour, and fame in full measure. Soldiers of the army
of Italy, will your courage fail ? ”

This speech from a young General of five-and-twenty
in whom great confidence had already been shown on
account of his brilliant feat of arms at Toulon, Saorgio,
and Savona, was received with loud applause.

48 ■

Nnpoleon as GcncraMn-Clucf of the French Army

Lngraved b) llnid frr>in n Urnuing b> nn unknu\%n Master

ONWARDS TO FAME, 1796-1797 49

When one wanted to avoid the Alps in order to pene-
trate into Italy by the Pass of Cadibona one had to
assemble the whole army on the extreme right wing. It
would have been a very dangerous venture, if the snow
had not still covered the exits from the Alps. The change
over from the defensive to tlic oflensive is one of the most
difficult of military ojterations. Stiruricr tvas posted with
his division at Garcssio in order to observe Colli’s camp
at Ceva. Massena and Augcrcau remained in reserve at
Loano in tlic region of Savona. Laharpe marched off to
threaten Genoa, and Voltri was occupied by an outpost.
At the same time I sent word to the Senate of Genoa to
ask leave to march through the Bocchetta to Gavi, and
informed them that I intended invading Lombardy, and
wishe'd accordingly to support myself on Genoa. The
Genoese were amazed at this news, and tlic Council met
fo^crpetual sitting.

The Commandcr-in-Chicf of the Austrian Army, Beau-
lieu, who was very uneasy at these communications,
came in all haste to the protection of Genoa. He moved
his head-quarters to Novi, and divided up liis army into
three corns. The right wing, under the command of
General Colli, which consisted cnUrcly of Piedmontese,
had its head-quarters in Ceva. It was charged tvitli the
defence of the Stura and the Tanaro. The centre, under
Argentcau,. marched to Montenottc, in order to cut off
the French Army, by falling on its left flank, and cutting
off the road from Savona to Comichc. Beaulieu in
person covered Genoa with his left wing, and marched to
Voltri. At the first glance these dispositions seem well
arranged, but when the lay of tlie land is more closely
studied, you discover that Beaulieu had separated his
forces, as every direct connection between his centre and
right was blocked, and could only take place behind the
mountains, while, on the other hand, the French Army
was so disposed that it could unite in a few hours, and
throw itself in a mass on either of the enemy corps. As
soon as one was beaten, the other would be compelled
undoubtedly to retreat.

General Argenteau, who commanded the centre of the
enemy’s army, had taken up his position at Montenotte
on the gth of April. On the lotli he MfFT'®

50 MEMOIRS OF NAPOLEON I

Negino with the object of reaching Madonna di Savona.
Colonel Rampon, who had been entrusted with the
protection of the three redoubts of Monte Negino, received
information of the enemy’s advance, and sent a strong
force against him, which he withdrew again into the
redoubts in the afternoon. Argenteau tried to capture
these without any special preparation, but his three
attacks were beaten back in succession, so that he gave up
the idea. As his troops were exhausted he retired to his
former position, and postponed till the next day the
taking of the redoubts from the rear.

As for Beaulieu, he marched towards Genoa on the
gth of April. The whole of the following day Laharpe
with his outpost was engaged in battle before Voltri to
prevent him from entering the defiles in the mountains
and establishing himself firmly in them. But on the
evening of the loth he fell back on Savona, and at day-
break on the I ith he found himself with his entire division
behind Rampon and the three redoubts of Monte Negino.

In the same night, from the loth to the nth, I marched
with the divisions of Massena and Augereau through the
Pass of Cadibona and made in the direction of Montenotte.
By daybreak Argenteau, who was hemmed in on all sides,
in front by Rampon and Laharpe, in the rear and the
flanks by piyself, was attacked. The result was decisive,
and Argenteau’s whole army was annihilated. At the
same time Beaulieu arrived in Voltri, and found nobody
there. It was only in the course of the 13th that this
general heard of the defeat at Montenotte, and the
advance of the French into Piedmont. He had to with-
draw his troops in all haste by the bad roads along which
they had come. The result was that, three days later, only
a portion of his troops could arrive in time to take part in
the Battle of Montebello.

On the 1 2th the head-quarters of the French Army
were in Carcare. The defeated army had retreated, the
Piedmontese towards Millesimo, and the Austrians towards
Dego. These two positions were connected by a Pied-
montese division who were to occupy the heights of
Biestro. In Millesimo the Piedmontese were on both
sides of the road which covers Piedmont. Colli, with all
the troops that he could take from liis right wing; joined

ON^VARDS TO FAME, 1796-1797 51

them. In Dego the Austrians liad oecupied the position
that defends tlie road to Acqui, leading into the direct
road to the Province of Milan. Gradually the enemy
were strengthened by the troops which Beaulieu tvas able
to bring up from Voltri.

In tliis way the two chief outlets towards Piedmont and
the !MiIan province were covered : the enemy hoped to
have time to establish and entrench himself there.
Although the Battle of Montenotte had been of such
great advantages to us, tlic enemy still had the possibility,
through his superiority in numbers, of making up for his
losses. However, ttvo days later — it w.as on the i.jth of
April — the Battle of Millcsimo opened to us the two
roads, tlie one to Turin, and the other to Milan. Augcreau,
who commanded the left wing of the French Army,
marched towards Millcsimo, Massen.a, tvith the centre
turned towards Dego, and Laharpe, who tvas in charge of
tlie right wing, aimed at winning the heights of Cairo.
Tlie enemy had his right wing supported on the Hill of
• Cosscria, svhich commanded both banks of the Bormida.
But on the rsth. General Augcreau, wiio had not taken
part in the Battle of Montenotte, threw back the enemy’s
right svith such impetuosity that he took from him the
defiles of Millcsimo and closed in Cosscria. Provera,
with his rear-guard of 2000 men, was surrounded. In
this desperate situation he retired into an old castle and
fortified himself in it. From his high position he could
sec the right wing of the Sardinian Army making prepara-
tions for the next d.ay’s battle, by which he lumed to be
relieved. All Colli’s troops from the camp at Ceva were
to have come up during tlie night. From the French
point of view sve recognised the importance of gaining

g osscssion of the Castle of Cosscria during the daytime.

ut as it was very strong the undertaking failed. On the
following day the two armies were engaged in hand-to-
hand fighting. After a stubborn fight Massena and
Laharpe took Dego, while M6iard and Joubert took the
Heights of Biestro. All Colli’s attacks to relieve Cosseria
svcrc in vain. He was beaten, and vigorously pursued, so
that Provera had to surrender in Cosscria. The enemy,
who was pursued as far as the Spigno Passes, lost a part of
his artillery, besides many flags and prisoners. From that

52 MEMOIRS OF NAPOLEON I

moment the separation of the Austrian and Sardinian
armies was noticeable. Beaulieu moved his head-quarters
to Acquij on the road to the Milan province, and Colli
turned in the direction of Geva, in order to oppose the
junction with Serurier, and to cover Turin.

In the meantime a division of Austrian Grenadiers,
who had marched from Voltri to Sassello, reached Dego
at three o’clock in the morning of the 15th April. After
a very hot fight lasting two hours, Dego was again captured
and the enemy’s division almost entirely made prisoners.

From now on I turned my attention to Colh and the
King of Sardinia, and contented myself with watching
the Austrians. Laharpe was given a post of observation
near Dego in order to protect our line of communications
with the rear, and to hold in check Beaulieu, whose
forces were very much weakened, and who was engaged
in collecting together the remnants of his army and
infusing new order into them. Laharpe’s division, which
had been obliged to remain for some days in their posi-
tion, found themselves in a very awkward situation on
account of the impoverished state of the district and the
lack of provisions. Serurier, who had heard in Garressio
of the Battles of Montenotte and Millesimo, now moved
forward, seized the heights lying in front of him, and
reached Ceva on the same day that Augereau arrived on
the Heights of Montezemolo. After a few light skirmishes
Colli evacuated the fortified encampment of Ceva, and
the Heights of Montezemolo ; he then withdrew behind
the Corsaglia. On the same day I advanced my head-
quarters to Ceva, The enemy had left there all his
artillery, as he no time to take it with him, and contented
himself with leaving a garrison in the castle. A mag-
nificent view presented itself on the arrival of the army on
the Heights of Montezemolo, for they could behold from
there the immense fertile plains of Piedmont. The Po,
the Tanaro, and a number of other rivers wound through
the plain. The horizon of this much-extolled land was
bounded at a considerable height by a chain-work of
snow and ice. Gigantic barriers, which seemed like the
boundaries of another world, and which had been formed
so powerfully by nature, and artificially strengthened as
well, had fallen vdth ease. “ Hannibal crossed the Alps,”

ONWARDS TO FAME, 1796-1797 53

I said, directing my gaze to the mountains ; “ as for us,
we Iiavc got round tlicm ! ” It was a well-chosen word
which expressed in short the thought and the result of the
Campaign.

The army now crossed the Tanaro River. For the first
time we found ourselves fully on Uic plain, and the
cavalry could be used with adranlagc. General Stengel,
who commanded these troops, crossed the Corsaglia at
Lcsigno, and rode into the plain. The head-quarters
were established in the Castle of Lcsigno, which is situated
on the right bank of the Corsaglia, near its confluence
with the Tanaro.

Gencnal Scruricr united his forces at San Michele. On
the 20th he crossed here by the bridge, tvhilc Massena at
the same time passed over to Tanaro, in order to attack
the Piedmontese. But Colli, who recognised the difficulty
of his position, left the confluence of the two rivers, and
established himself in Mondovi. Circumstances happen-
ing to be in his favour, he had just got close to San Michele
when Sdruricr was marching over the bridge. Colli
halted, attacked Sdruricr with superior forces, and com-
pelled him to retreat. In spile of that Sdruricr would
Iiavc held out in San Michele if one of his light infantry
regiments had not been plundering.

On the 22nd I myself marched over the bridge of Torre
against Mondovi. Colli had already constructed a few
entrenchments, and was prepared for an assault. His
right stood near the Madonna di Vico and his centre
near Bicocca. In tlic course of the day Sdruricr captured
the entrenchments of Bicocca and decided the battle,
which has been given the name of Mondovi. The town,
with all the stores, fell into the hands of the victors.

General Stengel, who had ventured into the plain svith
about a thousand troopers, was attacked by about twice
that number of Piedmontese. He did everything that can
be expected of a good general, and was in the act of
falling back on the main body when he was mortally
wounded in an attack. General Murat, leading the
cavalry, threw back the Piedmontese, and pursued them
in turn for several hours.

After the battle of Mondovi I m.arched against
Sdruricr on Fossano, and Augereau on Alba.

54 MEMOIRS OF NAPOLEON I

The three columns arrived at the same time, on the
25th of April, in Cherasco, Fossano, and Alba. Golli’s
head-quarters were in Fossano that day, and were driven
out by Serurier. Cherasco, which lies at the meeting of
the Stura and Tanaro, was, in fact, a strong position, but
badly defended, and devoid of any kind of provisions, as
it did not He on the border. I attached much importance
to its possession. As I found cannon there I had it fortified.
The vanguard crossed over the Stura, and marched on
the little town of Bra. As we were in touch with Serurier
we were enabled to get into communication with Nizza,
through Ponte di Nava, and we accordingly received
from there reinforcements in artillery and everything else
that could be procured. In the different battles we had
gained possession of much artillery, and many horses,
besides having seized a large number of horses in the
district of Mondovi. A few days after our arrival in
Cherasco, the army possessed 60 guns with ammunition,
and the cavalry new remounts. The soldiers, who,
during the eight or ten days of this campaign had been
without regular rations, now received full supplies.
Plundering and disorder, the usual consequences of a
rapid advance, ceased. Discipline was restored, and the
condition of the troops improved daily, thanks to the
abundance of everything, and the remedies which this
fair land afforded. The rapidity of the movements, the
dash of the troops, but more particularly the art of oppos-
ing the enemy with equal, or even superior numbers,
together with the results achieved, had prevented great
losses. Besides, from the depots and military hospitals
came crowds of soldiers from all directions at the mere
rumour of the victories, and because everywhere in the
army there was food and drink in abundance. In Pied-
mont the most splendid wines were found, the product of
Montferat, most resembling the French wines. But, until
then, the misery and destitution were such that one
would hardly dare to describe it. For several years the
officers received only eight francs a month, and the
General Staff had to go on foot. Field- Marshal Berthier
has preserved in his memoirs an order of the day from
Albenga in which every general was granted a gratuity of
sixty francs.

ONW'ARDS TO FAME, 1736-: 797 55

The army was now only ten miles from Turin. The
Sardinian Court saw no longer any means of escape. Its
army was discouraged, and in part destroyed. The
Austrian Army, whicli h.id shrunk to less than half,
seemed to tliink of nothing better than to cover Milan.
All over Piedmont people’s minds tverc greatly c.vcited,
and the Court did not possess public confidence in any
way. In its necessity it turned to tlic French general, and
asked for a truce. I acceded to the request, hlany
would have been glad to see the army advance and
march on Turin. But Turin is a fortified to«n, and when

the gates ivere once shut, in order to open them again
siege artillery would have been required, which was not
available. The King possessed, besides, a large number
of fortresses, and, in spite of the victories that we had
gained, the smallest fadurc, the slightest caprice of the
hckle goddess, might have overthrown everything. The
two hostile armies which, in spite of their numerous
defeats, were equal in numbers to the French Army,
possessed a considerable artillery, and, especially, a
numerous cavalry.

In spite of the many victories tlic French Army were
amazed at the greatness of the undertaking, and doubted
the possibility of success when the weakness of the means
at our disposal was considered. The slightest doubtful
occurrence would have brought in its train the most
unpleasant consequences. Officers, even generals, did
not understand the risks we should be taking in attempt-
ing to conquer Italy with so little artillery, scarcely any
cavalry, and such a weak army, which was constantly
being reduced through illness, and tlie distance from our
base. Traces of this opinion in the army arc to be found
in the proclamation which I addressed at that time to my
troops m Cherasco.

The discussions concerning the armistice took place in
my head-quarters at the palace of Count Salmatori, who
was then Steward of the King’s Household, and later
became prefect in my Imperial Palace. The Pied-
montese general, Latour, and Colonel Costa de Beau-
regard, the King’s plenipotentiaries, repaired to Cherasco.
Count la Tour, an old soldier, holding the rank of
Lieutenant-General in the service of Sardinia, was against v

56 MEMOIRS OF NAPOLEON I

all new ideas. He was a man of little culture and very
moderate abilities. On the other hand, Golonel Gosta de
Beauregard, a native of Savoy, was in the prime of life,
expressed himself with ease, was very intelligent, and
distinguished himself in every respect. The chief con-
ditions were as follows : The King should leave the
coalition and send a plenipotentiary to Paris to negotiate
the terms of a final peace there ; that during this time the
armistice should continue. Until the time when peace,
or the breaking off of negotiations, was settled, Geva,
Cuneo, Tortona — or else Alessandria in its place — wth
all the artillery and stores, should be handed over ^
immediately to the French Army.

From this time forward, we were able to pursue the
Austrians, now deprived of their allies, into the interior of
Lombardy. All the troops from the Army of the Alps,
and those from the district of Lyons, were now available,
and could join our forces. The length of our line of
communications with Paris was reduced by half. At last
we had everywhere points of supports, and large depots of
artillery, for the formation of fortress batteries, with
which to besiege Turin in case the Directory would not
conclude peace. My first adjutant, Golonel Murat, was
sent to Paris with twenty-one captured flags, and a copy
of the terms of the truce. The first fruits of the campaign
were gathered in the course of a fortnight. We had
obtained most important results. The Piedmontese
Alpine fortifications were in our hands, the coalition
against France was weaker by one Power, which had
raised an army of 50,000 men, and which was all the
more important on account of its geographical position.

In accordance with the conditions of the armistice the
King of Sardinia sent Gount Thaon de Revel from
Gherasco to Paris to negotiate the terms of peace. This
was concluded on the 15th of May. Through this treaty,
Alessandria also remained at the disposal of the French
Army. The frontier fortifications were demolished. The
Alps were now open, and the King remained completely
under the influence of France, for he no longer possessed
any strongholds except Turin and Bondo.

ONWARDS TO FAME, 1796-1797

57

TANGS or I.OVE TOR JOSETHINC

Ever)' moment takes me further from her, and every
moment I feel less power to bear the distance. She lives
continually in my tlioughts. My fancy c-tluiusts itself in
pondering over what she is doing at any given moment.
When in my imagination I see her sad, my heart almost
bursts, and I suffer infinitely. Wlicn I sec her cheerful in
the circle of her friends, I must reproach her for recover-
ing so quic^ from the painful separation at my departure
for Italy. Tlicn she is frivolous m my eyes, and possesses
no real depth of feeling.

Apart from her I know no gladness. Apart from her
the world is a wilderness to me, a desert in which I am all
alone, and am deprived of the sweet happiness of pouring
out my heart into hers. She has not merely stolen my
heart ; she is the only thought of my life ! When I am
wearied with the pressure of svork, or svhen I fear its
outcome, when people disgust me, when I am at the point
of taking a distaste to life, I I.iy_my hand on my heart.
Her portrait is there. I look at it, and love becomes for
me the most complete happiness. Everything smiles at
me, except the time that I am absent from my sweetheart.

What has she done to chain me to her so completely,
to unite ray whole existence with hers ? It is tvitclicraft !
And this passion of love will only end witli my life. To
live for Josephine is my whole endeavour. I do every-
thing to get to her ; I die to approach her. Ah, foolish
man that I am, I do not notice that I am ever getting
farther from her. What spaces, what hands separate us
from each other ! Ah, what a destiny is still before me 1
But if it takes me still farther from her I can no longer
bear it ; my courage svill not go so far.

My life is one continuoiK, tormenting dream. A
fearful foreboding takes away my breath. I simply go on
living. I have lost more than my life, more than my
happiness, more than my peace of mind. I am quite
without hope 1

Only a long letter from her can console me. She is ill,
she loves me, I have grieved her ; she is hopeful, and I
cannot see her. This thought^ throws me into confusion.
I have done her such a great injustice that I don’t know

58 MEMOIRS OF NAPOLEON I

how I am to make up for it. I reproach her for remaining
in Paris, and she is ill ! Can she forgive me ? The love
with which she has inspired me has robbed me of my
reason ! I shall never find her again !

Of this aflliction one is never cured. My forebodings
are so fearful that I ^vould be contented if I could clasp
her to my heart for two hours, and die with her. How
is she occupying herself? I suppose she has taken her
daughter, liortcnsc, to her house to live with her, and I
love this dear child a thousand times more, since I know
that she can console her mother a little. For me there is
no consolation, no rest, no hope, before the messenger has
returned whom I have sent to her. Only when she
explains to me -what her illness is, and just to what extent
her sickness is to be taken as serious, shall I be calmer.
If it is dangerous I shall set out for Paris immediately.
My arrival will contribute to her recovery. I have
always been successful. Never has Fate opposed my will,
but to-day I have been struck a cruel blow in my dearest
and only one.

All my thoughts are centred in her bedroom, at her bed,
in her heart. Her illness occupies me day and night. • I
have neither appetite nor interest for friendship, fame, or
country ! She alone lives in me ; I care as little for
the rest of the world as if it did not exist. Honour is
important to me because it is important to her ; so it is
with victory, because it gives her pleasure. If it were not
for that I should have left everything in the lurch to go
and throw myself at her feet. At times, it is true, I say to
myself : I am worrying myself without reason ; she has
already recovered ; she has started on her journey, she
is perhaps already in Lyons ! Oh, vain dream ! She is
lying in bed in Paris, in pain, still a thousand times fairer,
more interesting, more worthy of adoration !

It had never come into my mind to think of another
woman. In my eyes they are all without charm, beauty,
or intellect. Only she alone, as she is, as I can see her,
can please me, and occupy my whole heart and soul.
She claims all my being. No corner of my heart is hidden
from her, all my thoughts belong to her. My strength,
my arms, my mind, all belong her. My soul lives in her
body, and the day in which she changed, or ceased to

ONWARDS TO FAME, 1796-1797 59

live, would also be llic day of my dcalli. Tlie earlli and
Nature are only beautiful because she dwells in them.

(After I bad seen Iter again.) ^Vbcn I svas far away
from her I was alwaj-s sad ; only in her presence I tvas
happy. Her clianning jealousy, and her incomparable
witchery, kindle anew the wildly glowing llame of my
heart and senses. If only I bad been free from cares and
business, in order to spaid all my time wi'th her I
Some time ago I thought I loved her, but after basing
seen her again, I felt that I loved her a thousand times
more. Since the time I first knew her, I worship her
more cs'crj' day. That pros-cs bow false is the maxim of
La Bruyirc : “ Love comes all of a sudden.”

I TAKr. Tiir. naiDGC or tom, lorii st.w, 1796

Tlic hc.id^ju3rtcrs reached Casale on the loth of .May,
at three o'clock in the morning. At nine o'clock our
vangu.ird thretv thansclvcs on the enemy, ivho were
defending the approaches to Lodi. I at once ordered all
the c.ivalr>- to mount and take with them four small
cannon which had just arrived and were drawn by cart-
horses belonging to the lord of the manor of Piacenza.
General Augercau's division, which had p.isscd the night
in liorghctto, together with that of Massena from Casale,
at once began to move. In the meantime our vanguard
overthresv all the enemy’s outposts and captured a cannon.
S'c forced our svay into Jjodi, thus driving out the enemy,
who had already crossccl the bridge over the Adda.
Biaulicu stood ssith his whole army in battle array. The
ondge svas defended by thirty pieces of fortress artillery,
t ordered all my artillery to drive up. For several hours
there was a very lively cannonade. As soon as the army
had’eome up they formed into close columns, 'sith the
Carabinicr battalions leading, Ibllowcd by all the
Grenadier batt.ilions. At flic double, and v.itli a snout :

Long live the Republic ! ” our men hurled thcms^cs
on the bridge, which svas 200 metres in Icngtli. the
enemy opened a murderous fire. The head of the leading
column seemed to waver. A moment’s irrcsoluuon a^
everything svould have been lost. This
by Generals Bcrthier, M.isscna, Cervona, DallOTaOT^
Bngadicr-Gcncral Lannes, and Battalion-Commander

6o MEMOIRS OF NAPOLEON I

Dupas, who at once placed themselves at. the head of
their troops, and decided the \vavering fortune. This
redoubtable column overthrew everything that stood in
their way. The whole of the enemy’s artilleiy was taken
in a moment ; Beaulieu’s order of battle was broken
through, and in all directions the column spread terror,,
flight, and death. In a trice the whole hostile army was
burst asunder. Generals Rusca, Augereau, and Bcyrand,
directly their divisions had arrived, marched over the
bridge and fully completed the victory. The artillery
crossed over the Adda by a ford, but as the ford was a
very bad one, the artilleiy were much delayed, which
hindered the shooting.

In order to cover the retreat of the infantry, the enemy’s
cavalry tried to attack our troops, but they were not so
easily frightened. Tlie approaching night, and the
extraordinary fatigue of the troops, many of whom had
marched more than ten leagues that day, did not allow of
our pursuing them. The enemy had lost twenty guns,
with two to three thousand killed, wounded, or prisoners,
while our losses only amounted to 150 killed and wounded.

THE EMPEROR ORDERS A NEW OFFENSIVE AGAINST ME —

WURMSER’s preliminary GAINS — ^I WIN AT LONATO, AND

CASTIGLIONE ON THE gRD AND 5TH AUGUST, 1 796

When the news spread of the arrival of the French at
the Adige, and the siege of Mantua, the Austrian Court
gave up the intended offensive in Alsace and the Lower
Rliine, and ordered Field-Marshal Wurmser, who had
been appointed to the command of these operations, to
divert his route in all haste to Italy, and take with him
30,000 of his best troops, which, together with the rein-
forcements which had been sent from all parts of the
monarchy, formed an army of almost 100,000 men.

Since the end of June 1 796 I had been closely following
all these preparations, which occupied me keenly. I
informed the Directory that it was impossible for 30,000
Frenchmen alone to withstand the attacks of the united
power of Austria. I requested them to send me reinforce-
ments from the Army of the Rhine, or alternately, that
these same armies should begin the campaign without
delay. I reminded them of the positive promise that had

ONWARDS TO FAME, J795-1797 6i

been given me, on my departure from Paris, llial tlic
forces on the Rliinc should begin their operations on the
15th of April, but that already two montlis had passed
iriliiout a move haring been made.

Wurmser left the Rliinc irilli his reinforcements at the
beginning of June, and our combined army of the Rhine
and Sambre and Meuse at length opened the campaign.

At this time, however, its coopcmtioit srith the Italian
Army was no longer of use, for Wurmser had already
arrived.

1 united all my forces .at the Adige and the Chipc, and
left no troops beliind, either in the legations or in Tuscany,
except a battalion in Ferrara, and two in Leghorn. I was
unable to collect together under arms more than 30,000
men, and ivith this army I had to fight the main army of
tlic House of Austria.

At the end of July General Sauret was with his Genera!
Staff at Salo ; he was charged with the covering of the
means ofc.xit from the CItiese where a main road connects
Trent with Brescia. Massena was in Bussolcngo, and
caused Corona and Monte Baldo to be occupied by
Joubert’s brigade, while he himscir fought with the rest of
his division on the plateau of Rivoli. Dallcmagnc's
brigade was established in Verona, and Augereau's
division occupied Legnago and the Lower Adige. General
Guillaume was in command in Peschiera, where si.x
galleys under the control of Allcmand, captain of a
finc-of-battlc ship, protected the Lake of Garda. Finally,
Sdruricr was besieging Mantua, and Kilmainc commanded
the army’s cavalry corps.

^yur^lscr, who had been informed of the capture of the
fortified camp before Mantua and the great straits of tlic
fortress, attempted to accelerate his movements by eight
or ten days. He divided up his forces into three corps.
The first and strongest formed his centre. It consisted of
four divisions and svas 40,000 strong. This army corps
marched over Monte Baldo, and took possession of all the
muntry lying between the Adige and the Lake of Garda.
The second corps formed the left wing, and consisted of an
infantry division of lo.oQo to 12,000 men, accompanied
by all the artillery, cavalry, and baggage troops. It^
moved fonvard along the road leading from Rovcrcto t

62 MEMOIRS OF NAPOLEON I

Verona, on the left bank of the Adige, and was to unite
with the other forces, either on the plateau of Rivoli or at
the bridges of Verona. The third army corps, which
formed his right wing, was three divisions strong, and
consisted of 30,000 to 35,000 men. It marched down the
left shore of the Garda Lake, followed the course of the
Chiese, and then the shores of the Idro Lake. By taking
this route the corps had avoided the Mincio, had cut off
one of the chief roads of the French Army to Milan, and
made a complete change in the siege of Mantua. On the
part of the enemy this plan was a sign of the extraordinary
confidence which he had in his own strength and its
results. He reckoned absolutely on our defeat, so that he
was already taking measures for cutting off our retreat.
In this way Wurmser was already surrounding the French
Army in advance. He beheved that it must without fail
defend the army besieging Mantua. And when he was
firmly convinced on this point, he resolved to surround
the French Army, as he considered it inseparable from
the besieging army. At the end of July the French
head-quarters were moved to Brescia. On the 28th, at
ten o’clock in the evening, I left Brescia on a tour of
inspection of the outposts. When I reached Peschiera at
daybreak on the 2gth, I learnt that Corona and Monte
Baldo had been attacked by considerable forces. At
eight o’clock in the morning I arrived in Verona. At
two o’clock in the afternoon the enemy’s light infantry
appeared on the summit of the mountains which separate
Verona from Tyrol and were attacking our troops. I
rode back all the evening, and removed my head-quarters
to Gastel Nuovo between the Adige and the Mincio. I
was in a better position there for receiving reports from
the whole line. In the course of the night I learnt that
Joubert had been attacked at Corona by a whole army.
He was said to have just withdrawn on to the plateau of
Rivoli, which Massena had occupied with considerable
forces.

A little later I was informed that the enemy division
had pushed forward their vanguard to Brescia, where
they met vdth no resistance ; for we had only left there
300 soldiers discharged from the hospitals. In this way
the army’s line of communications with Milan via Brescia

ONWARDS TO FAME, 1 795 -* 797 63

was broken, and we could only communicate with that
town sia Cremona.

Hostile troops were to be seen on all the roads from
Brescia to Milan, Cremona, and Mantua, and spread the
news that an army of 80,000 men bad advanced througb
Brescia, and that another army of 100,000 men t\-as
movang on Verona. I learnt further that the enemy
division wliich had marched on Sale w.as already enraged
in battle with Saurct, and that the latter, who had_ heard
’that two more divisions were marching on Brescia and
Lonato, was afraid of being cut off from Brescia and Uic
army, and had, therefore, considered it ncccssarj’ to
withdraw on to tlic Heights of Desenzano. He had left
General Guieu behind in Salo with 1500 men, in an old
castle, a kind of fortress. From this moment IS'urmser’s
plan of campaign was revealed. Alone against all these
forces the French Army could accomplish nothing, for we
tvcrc only one against three. But there was equality of
forces as against each of the enemy corps taken separately.

I at once made up my mind. The enemy had taken
the initiative, which he honed to maintain ; but I resolved
to nullify the enemy’s plans by assuming the olfcnsive
myself. M'urmscr supposed Uiat tlie French Army was
bound to the Mantua position, but I determined to make
it movable by raising Ine siege of this place, by sacrificing
my whole park of garrison artillery, and by throwing
myself ivith all possible speed on one of the enemy’s
army corps, in order, later, to turn on the others. As the
right wing of the Austrian Army, which svas on the road
leading from Chiese to Brescia, had ventured farthest, I
fell on this one first.

Sdrurier burnt his gun-carriages and his platforms,
threw the powder into the water, buried his ammunition,
spiked his guns, and raised the siege of Mantua on the
night between the 31st ofjuly and the ist of August.

Augcreau marched from Legnago across the Mincio to
Borghetto. Massena passed the whole day of the 30th
defending the heights between the Adige and the Garda
Lake ; and Dallemagnc turned towards Lonato.

I betook myself to the heights behind Desenzano. I
ordered Sauret to march back to Salo, to relieve General
Guieu. In the meantime this general had been engaged

64 MEMOIRS OF NAPOLEON I

in desperate conflicts for forty-eight hours against a
whole enemy division. Five times they had tried to take
the place by storm, and five times they had been beaten
back. Sauret arrived exactly at the critical moment
when the enemy was making a last attempt. He fell on
his flank, completely beating him, captured two of his
flags, and relieved Guieu.

At the same moment the Austrian division of Gavardo
had begun to march on Lonato, in order to take up a
position on the heights, and establish its communication
with Wurmser on the Mincio. I myself led Dallemagne’s
brigade against this division. This brigade won for itself
extraordinary fame. The enemy was beaten, and suffered
severe losses.

During this time Wurmser had marched his artillery
and his cavalry over the bridge of Verona. Master of the
whole district between the Adige arid the Garda Lake, he
placed one of his divisions on the Heights of Pescluera, to
cover this place and protect his line of communications.
He sent to Borghetto two other divisions, and a part of
his cavalry, to seize the bridge over the Mincio and to
keep in touch with his right wing. Finally, with the two last
divisions of his infantry, and the remainder of the cavalry,
he marched on Mantua, to raise the siege of this fortress.

Twenty-four hours previously, the French troops had
evacuated the whole region of Mantua : Wurmser found
there the trenches and earthworks still intact, the guns,

however, overthrown and spiked, and everywhere rernains
of gun-carriages, platforms, and munitions of all kinds.
The haste with which these measures had apparently
been taken seemed to cause him a lively satisfaction, lor
everything that he saw around him appeared to be tne
effect of a sudden panic, rather than the results or 3.
carefully thought out plan. After Massena had held tne
enemy the whole day of the 30th, he marched at nignt
close to Peschiera, crossed over the Mincio, and then
turned on Brescia. The Austrian division which appeare
before Peschiera, found the right bank of the Mincio
covered with tirailleurs who had been supplied from t e
garrison, and a rear-guard which Massena .h^^o ic
behind, and who had orders to defend the crossing or t
Mincio, and afterwards to concentrate on Lonato.

From a l>ortraU by (tuUbm Iwr Tbkr? )ti Jbr Vrimll'd Uvv^titM

ON\VARDS TO FAME, 1796-1797 65

Wliilc Augcrcau was turning upon Brescia, he had
crossed the Mincio near Borghetto. There he Iiad dcs*
troyed the bridge, besides leaving a rear-guard for the
protection of the river, with orders to fall back on
Castiglionc, in ease the enemy should force a crossing.

The whole night from the 31st of July to the ist of
August I marched on Brescia %vith the divisions of
Augcrcau and hfassena, reaching the town at ten o’clock
in the morning. The enemy’s division at Brescia, who
had been informed that the entire French Army was
marching on them from various roads, had no desire to
wait for the enemy, and withdrew in the greatest haste.
On their entry into Brescia the Austrians had found there
all our sick and convalescent, but they remained here
only a short time, and had been compelled to beat such
a hasty retreat, that they did not find an opportunity of
looking after tlicir prisoners. Some battalions were sent
up to Sant Osetto in pursuit of the enemy. The two
divisions of Augcrcau and Massena returned by forced
marches from the Mincio, in order to support their
rear-guard.

On the and of August, Augcrcau, whose troops formed
the right wng, occupied Montcchiaro, Massena, who
formed the centre, was established in Pontc-Marco, and
was in touch \rith Saurct, who was occupying, with the
left \ring, a hill between Salo and Desenzano, and was so
placed that he could hold in check the whole right wing
of the enemy.

Meanwhile, the rear-guards that Augcrcau and Massena
the hhneto, tvithditw htfoie the enemy
divisions which had crossed the river. Augcrcau’s rear-
guard left this post too soon, and came back to their corps,
Nvith their ranks broken. The enemy, taking advantage
of this mistake of General Valcttc, who was in command
of the rear-guard, took possession of Castiglionc on the
2nd of August, and established himself firmly there.

On the 3rd of August was fought the Battle of Lonato,
in which were engaged Wurmscr’s two divisions, which
had come from Borghetto, and one of the brigades belong-
ing to the divisions left behind at Pcschicra. Including
the cavalry, the enemy’s forces numbered 30,000 men.
The French had 20,000 to 30,000 men ; so that the result

66 MEMOIRS OF NAPOLEON I

could not be in doubt. Wurmser, -with the tw^o infantry
divisions and the cavalry, which he had led to Mantua,
could not be present.

In the grey light of morning the enemy marched on
Lonato, which he attacked violently. From that place he
hoped to be able to effect a junction with his right wing,
the condition of which, moreover, began to cause him
uneasiness. Massena’s outposts were overthrown, and the
enemy took Lonato.

At the time I happened to be in Ponte-Marco, and
resolved to recapture Lonato. The Austrian general,
who had extended his position too far, especially on the
right wing, with the object of keeping in touch with Salo,
was hurled back, Lonato was taken by storm, and the
enemy’s line was broken through. A part of his forces
retreated to the Mincio, the others hastened to Salo, but
by this movement the Austrians found themselves with
General Sauret in front and General Saint-Hilaire in the
rear. Surrounded on all sides, the 'enemy had to lay
down their arms. As we were attacked in the centre, we,
in our turn, took up the attack on the right wing. During
the day Augereau attacked the hostile forces covering
Castiglione and beat them after a stubborn fight, in which
the quality of our troops had to make up for their lack in
numbers. The enemy suffered great damage, lost Castig-
lione, and fell back on Mantua, where he received his first
reinforcements, but only when the day was already over.
We lost many brave soldiers in this stubborn engagement.

The three divisions of the Austrian right wing received,
during the night, the news of the result of the battle
of Lonato, and their discouragement was great. Their
junction with the main body of the Austrian Army was
now impossible. They had, besides, seen various French
divisions opposite to them and believed the French Army
to be inexhaustible, as they saw it everywhere.

Wurmser had sent out a portion of his troops from
Mantua towards Mascaria in pursuit of Serurier. It,
therefore, cost him some time to fetch back his troops to
Castiglione. Even on the 4th he had not succeeded in
doing it. He spent the whole time in reorganising the
troops that had taken part in the battle of Lonato, and in
repairing his artillery.

ONWARDS TO FAME, 179G-1797 67

As I surveyed my line of battle, about two or three
o’clock I found it very imposing, for it still comprised
40,000 fighting men. I gave orders that the men should
entrench themselves near Castiglionc, and proceeded to
Lonato to obscivc the movements of my troops who were
to assemble in the night at Castiglionc. The whole day
long Generals Saurct and Herbin had been marching on
the one side of the three divisions of tlic enemy’s right
wing and those who were beaten in the centre of Lonato,
while Generals D.illemagnc and Saint-Hilairc had been
marching on the other side. They had been pursued
trithout rest or intermission, and at every step prisoners
had been taken. \Vho!e battalions, some at Sant-Osetto,
others at G.avardo, had laid down tlicir arms. Many
portions of their troops repeatedly took the svrong road in
the valleys lying around.

Four or five thousand men who had heard from the
country people that there were only tsoo French in
Lonato, marched to that place in the hope of forcing a
way through to the Mincio. It was four o’clock in the
afternoon. At the same hour I arrived from C.istiglione.
A messenger with a (lag of truce is announced. At the
same time I am informed that our men arc standing to
arras, for enemy columns arc approaching from Pontc-
San-Marco. They arc in tlic act of marching into Lonato
and are calling on the garrison to surrender.

Yet we were masters of Salo and Gavardo, and it was
apparently only a ease of broken columns who were
seeldng to cut their way through. I ordered my numerous
General Staff to mount their horses, caused the messenger
to be brought to me, and the bandage to be removed
from his eyes, so that he could see that he was in the
middle of a large general staff. " Inform your General,”

I said to him, “ that I give him eight minutes to lay down
his arms ; he is in die midst of the French Army ; when
the time allowed has passed, he has nothing more to hope
for.”

These 4000 or 5000 men, who had been worried and
driven about hither and tliither for three days, and did
not know what would become of them, thought that they
had been deceived by the country people, and laid down
their arms. This single incident will give an idea of the

68 MEMOIRS OF NAPOLEON I

disorder and confusion of the Austrian divisions, which,
having been beaten at Salo, Lonato, and Gavardo, were
pursued in all directions, thoroughly disorganised, and
almost completely broken up.

The remainder of the evening was spent in assembling
the columns and directing them to Castiglione.

On the 5th of August, before the break of day, the
whole French Army, 25,000 strong, including Serurier’s
division, was united, and occupied the Heights of Castig-
lione. It was an excellent position. General Serurier,
with the siege division from Mantua, had received orders
to march all night, and at daybreak to fall on the rear-
guard of Wurmser’s left wing. Serurier’s attack .was to be
the signal for the beginning of the battle. I expected a
great moral effect from this unexpected attack, and in
.order to render it still more effective, the French Army
was made to appear as if it were retreating.

As soon as the first shots of Serurier’s troops were
heard (he, being ill, was replaced by General FioreUa),
our troops threw themselves on the adversary, whose
confidence in victory had already been very much shaken.
A hill lying in the middle of the plain formed a strong
point of support for the enemy’s left wing. General
Verdier was instructed to attack it. My adjutant, Mar-
mont, came to his assistance with twenty cannon, and the
point of support was captured. Massena attacked the
right wing, Augereau the centre, and FioreUa fell on the
rear of the left wing. Everywhere our men were victorious,
and the enemy was completely put to flight. It was only
owing to the extreme exhaustion of the French troops that
the ruins of Wurmser’s army could be saved from des-
truction. They fled in disorder over the Mincio where
Wurmser hoped to stop them. If he had retained his
connection with Mantua, it would probably have been
possible for him to do so. But Augereau’s division was
marching on Borghetto and Massena’s on Peschiera. I
myself was advancing -svith Serurier’s division on Verona.
At seven o’clock in the evemng we arrived before the
to-vra. Wurmser had ordered the gates to be closed, for
he hoped to be able to save his baggage in the night.
The gates were shot do%vTi \rith cannon-balls, and wc
forced an entrance into the town. In this action the

ONWARDS TO FAME. 179G-1797 Gg

Austrians lost many men. Soon Monte Baldo, Rocca
d’Anfo, and Riva were also captured, and Augereau
succeeded in reaching Ala.

After the loss of two battles, like those of Lonato and
Castiglionc, Wurmscr must have seen that it was impossible
for lum to contest the line of the Adige svith the French.
He therefore withdrew to Rovcrcto and Trent. But the
French Army was also in need of rest. In spite of his
defeats the strength of IVurmser’s fighting forces was still
quite equal to ours, but with the difference that now one
battalion of our Army of Italy was able to put four of the
enemy’s battalions to flight. Wurmscr had, it is true,
strengthened the garrison of Mantua, but, of his very
fine army he led back not more than 40,000 or 45,000 men.

HARD noirrs around arcola, 15TI1 to i8th nov.,
1796

As I had been informed of the movements of the
Commandcr-in-Chicf of the Imperial Army, Ficld-Manhal
Alyinezy, who was approaching Verona in order to effect
a junction with the divisions of his army quartered in
Tirol, I proceeded, with the divisions of Augereau and
Massena, along the Valley of the Adige. In the night,
between the 14111 and 15th November, 1796 , 1 ordered a
bridge of boats to be put together, and we crossed the
river. I hoped, in the course of the morning, to reach
Villanova, and from there to capture the enemy’s artillery
and baggage, besides attacking the. enemy in the flank
and rear. The bead-quarters of Genera] Ahinezy were
in Caldicro. The enemy had, in the meantime, received
information of our movements, and had sent a regiment
of Croats, together with a couple of Hungarian regiments,
to the village of Arcola, which is extraordinarily strong on
account of its position among swamps and canals. This
village held up the vanguard of our army the whole day.
In vain the generals, who understood that precious time
was being lost, rode up to the head of our columns to
force them to cross the Bridge of Arcola. Too much
courage does harm : they were almost all wounded.
Generals Verdier, Lannes, Bon, and Verne, were disabled.
Thereupon Augereau seized a flag, ran with it to the
beginning of the bridge, and shouted : “ Cowards, are

70 MEMOIRS OF NAPOLEON I

you then so very much afraid of death ? ” and remained
in this attitude for several minutes without the least
result. However, we had to cross the bridge, or else
make a detour of several leagues, by which our whole
operation would have failed. I therefore hurried up to
the bridge myself and asked the soldiers whether they
were really the victors of Lodi. My presence produced
an emotion in the troops which decided me to make
another attempt at the crossing. General Lannes, who
had already been wounded by two musket-bullets,
returned, and received a tliird and dangerous wound.
General Vignolles was also wounded. We now had to
give up the idea of storming the village from the front,
and were obliged to wait for the arrival of a column,
commanded by General Guieu, which I had sent via
Albaredo. It did not arrive before nightfall. Guieu
gained possession of the village, taking four guns and a
few hundred prisoners. During this time General Massena
was attacking a division which the enemy had sent from
his head-quarters to threaten our left flank. He repulsed
them and put them completely to flight.

It had been found advisable to evacuate the village of
Areola during the night, and we quite expected to be
attacked at daybreak by the whole army of the enemy,
who had had time to take away their baggage and artillery,
and to draw back farther in order to receive us.

At break of day the fight developed on all sides with
the greatest liveliness. Massena, on the left, routed the
. enemy, and pursued him up to the gates of Galdiero.

General Robert, who was in the centre with the 75th
Half-brigade, attacked the enemy with the bayonet, and
strewed the field with dead. I now ordered General Vial,
with a half-brigade, to march along the Adige, so as to
turn the whole left wing of the enemy. But the country
presented insurmountable obstacles. In vain the brave
general threw himself up to his neck in the Adige. Only
80 Grenadiers were able to follow him, which did not give
any satisfactory result. In the night between the i6th
and 17th I had bridges built over the canals and swamps, .
wliich General Augereau crossed over with his division.
At ten o’clock in the morning we stood opposite to each
other : General Massena on the left wing. General

ONWARDS TO FAME, 179G-1797 V

Robert in tlic centre, and General Augercau on the right
wing.

The enemy vigorously attacked the centre, and drove
it back. Then I brought up from the left tving the
32nd Half-brigade, placed them in ambush in the woods,
and when the enemy, who was driving thc centre in front
of him, was in the act of turning our right wing, General
Gardanne, at tlic head of the 32nd Half-brigade, rushed
out of his ambush, took the enemy in the flank, and
produced terrible slaughter in his ranks. The enemy’s
left sring was supported by the swamps, and held our
right ving in respect owing to its superiority in numbers.
1 now ordered Citizen Hcrcule, an ofliccr of my Guides,
to choose twenty-five men from his company, to march
them half a league along the Adige, to avoid all the
swamps which supported the left wing of tlie enemy, and
then, in full gallop and with the braying of trumpets, to
fall on the enemy’s rear. Tliis manoeuvre succeeded
perfectly ; the enemy’s infantry began to waver, pcneral
Augercau was not slow in taking advantage of this. The
enemy, fighting a rear-guard action, and still opposing
the attacks made on him, is completely routed by a small
column of 800 to goo men, with four guns, which I liad
ordered to marcli via Portc-Lcgnago, to take up a position
in the rear of tlic enemy, and then to fall on him from
behind. General Massena, who had again taken up his
position on the left uang, now marched straight to Areola,
seized the village, and pursued the enemy as far as San
Bonifacio. The night, however, prevented us from
advancing farther.

The results of tlic battle of Areola were 4000 to 5000
prisoners, four flags, eighteen cannon. The enemy had
at least 4000 killed, and an equal number of wounded ;
we, on the other hand, had a list of 900 wounded, and
about 200 killed.

Many times in my life I have been saved by officers and
soldiers who protected me with their bodies when I w.as
in the greatest danger. When I was in the raging turmoil
of the fight at Areola, my adjutant. Colonel Muiron,
threw himself towards me, covered me with his body, and
received the bullet which was intended for me. He simk
at my feet, and his blood splashed into my face. He

72 MEMOIRS OF NAPOLEON I

sacrificed his life to preserve mine. Never, I believe, have
soldiers shown such great self-sacrifice as mine have for
me ! In spite of all my defeats, no soldier has ever cursed
me, not even when dying. Never have troops served a
man more faithfully than they have served me ! To the
last drop of the blood that flowed from their veins, they
called : “ Long live the Emperor 1 ’’

CHAPTER IV

IN THE LAND OF THE pyiL\MIDS, 179B-1799
I LAND IN EOyrT, AND TAKE ALEXANDRIA BY STORJI

O N tlie I gill of June, 1798, the army had left
Malta, and at daybreak on the ist of July it
arrived off Alexandria. A very strong English
squadron, so they said, had appeared there three days
earlier, and had delivered despatches for India.

There was a fresh wind and a rolling sea, still I felt that
I must land at once. The day was p.isscd in making
preparations for landing. The first to do so was General
Mcnou, tvho disembarked at the head of his division, near
the Marabouts, about a league and a half from Alexandria.

I landed tvith General Klcbcr at eleven o’clock at
night. IVe marched at once to Alexandria. At dawn
we perceived Pompey’s Pillar. A detachment of Mame-
lukes and Arabs began to skirmish with our vanguard.
But we proceeded rapidly towards the different points of
Alexandria. The ramparts of the Arab city were crowded
with people. General Klcbcr burst forth from the Pompey
Pillar, in order to climb the ramparts, while General Bon
stormed the Rosetta Gate ; ana General Mcnou, with
part of his division, blockaded the thrcc-comcrcd castle,
threw the remainder ag.ainst another part of the fortifica-
tions, and forced his way through. He was the first to
enter the fortress. In this engagement he received seven
wounds, none of which, fortunately, was dangerous.

General Klcbcr pointed out the spot, at the foot of the
wall, where his Grenadiers were to climb up. When
doing this a bullet grazed his forehead, and flung him to
the ground. Fortunately bis wound was not mortal.
The Grenadiers of his division were spurred on to greater
courage by this incident; and forced their way into the
fortress. The 4th half-brigade, commanded by General
Marmont, smashed in the Rosetta Gate wdth the axe, and

74 MEMOIRS OF NAPOLEON I

the wliole division of General Bon stormed into the
fortifications of the Arabs.

When we had captured the fortified ramparts of the
Arabs, our enemies fled into the three-cornered castle,
the lighthouse, and the New Town. Every house was a
small fortress in itself. !But when the day was almost over,
the town became calm, the garrisons of the two castles
surrendered, and now we were completely masters of the
town, the forts, and the two harbours.

In the meantime the Arabs of the desert, in mounted
detachments of tliirty to fifty men, had ridden up hastily.
They worried our rear-guard, and fell on men of the
train. For two whole days they annoyed us incessantly.
But I soon succeeded in concluding with them, not only
a treaty of friendship but even of alliance. Thirteen of
their most important chiefs came to me. I sat in the
middle of them, and we held a long conversation. When
we had agreed on the articles of our treaty, we assembled
round a table, and we consigned to the flames of Hell
whomsoever should injure our decision, that is to say,
either themselves or me. The agreements were as
follows :

They, on their side, should cease to harass my rear-
guard, support me with all their power, and supply me
with as many men as I should require, in order to march
against the Mamelukes. I, for my part, should, when I
became master of Egypt, restore to them the lands that
had formerly belonged to them.

Prayers were said, as usual, in the mosques, and my
house was crowded continually with Imams or Kadis,
Shereefs, the foremost people of the country, and Muftis
or religious leaders.

MARCH THROUGH THE DESERT — FIRST FIGHTS

On the yth of July the army of Alexandria broke camp,
and arrived on the 8th at Damanhur, after having suffered
enormously on the march through the desert from the
extraordinary heat and the lack of water. On the loth
of July we reached El-Rahmanieh, on the Nile, and
joined the division of General Dugua, which had come up
by forced marches from Rosetta. General Desaix’s
division was attacked near El-Rahmanieh by a force of

THE LAND OF THE PYRAMIDS, 1798-1799 75

about 700 to 800 Mamelukes, who withdrew after a
rather brisk cannonade and the loss of a few men.

In the meantime, I was informed that Murad Bey was
waidng for us near tlic village of Kobrakit, at the head of
Ids army consisting of a great number of mounted men,
aided by eight or ten large gunboats and several batteries,
on tlic Nile. In order to get in touch witli 1 dm, we began
to move on the evening of the 12th July, and at daybreak
on the following day we were opposite to him. We
possessed only two liundrcd horsemen weakened and
half sick from the march through the desert. The Mame-
lukes, on the other hand, had a splendid body of mounted
men, all gleaming rvith gold and silver, who were armed
witli the best London carbines and pistols, and tlic best
sabres of the East, and were riding perhaps the best
hones on the Continent.

The army stood in battle array. Each division formed
a square, with tlic baggage in the centre, and the artillery
in the spaces between the battalions. All the five divisions
of the army were arranged in echelon, mutually covering
each other, and were protected by two villages which we
bad occupied.

Citizen PcrriSc, commander of a small squadron, moved
up with three gunboats, a xebec, and a half-galley, to
attack the enemy’s flotilla. The fight was extremely
stubborn. From both sides more than 1500 cannon-shots
were fired. Perree was wounded in the arm by a cannon-
ball. It was oiving to his skilful arrangements that the
French were successful in retaking the three gunboats and
, the half-galley, which the Mamelukes had captured, and
in setting fire to their flagship.

Soon the cavalry of the Mamelukes covered the whole
plain, enveloped both our wings, and tried everysvhere to
find a weak point in our flanks and our rear, in order to
penetrate into our positions. But everywhere they found
the line equally formidable, and they were greeted by a
double fire from the front and the side. Many times did
the enemy’s cavalry try to charge down on us, but always
svithout result. Some of the more valiant began skirmish-
ing, and were received by volleys from the carabiniers,
who had been placed in the spaces between the battalions.
At last, after having remained a part of the day at a

76 MEMOIRS OF NAPOLEON I

distance of half the range of our cannon, they withdrew
and disappeared. Tiicir losses may be estimated at some
three hundred hilled and wounded.

For a whole week, deprived of everything, we have
been marching continually in one of the hottest countries
in Ihe^ world. On the morning of the 20th July the
Pyramids came into view. In the evening we found
ourselves still six leagues from Cairo, and I learnt that the
twenty-three Beys had entrenched themselves, with all the
forces at their command, in Embabeh, and that they had
fortified their earth'^vorks with over sixty guns.

THE BATTLE OF THE PYRAMIDS, ON THE 2 1 ST JULY,

1798

On the 2ist of July we attacked the enemy’s outposts
and forced them back from village to village. At two
o’clock in the afternoon we found ourselves face to face
with the hostile fortifications and army.

I ordered the divisions of Generals Desaix and Reynier
to take up their position on the right between Giseh and
Emballeh, with the object of cutting off the enemy’s
communications with Upper Egypt, his natural line of
retreat. The army was arranged in the same way as in
the battle of Kobrakit.

When Murad Bey observed the movement of General
Desaix he resolved to attack him. He sent one of his
bravest Beys with a picked body of troops who threw
themselves with lightning speed on the two divisions.
We allowed them to approach within fifty paces, and
received them with a hail of bullets and case-shot which
stretched many of them on the ground. The others
charged into the space separating the two divisions,
where they were greeted by a double fire which completed

their defeat. ^

I seized the opportunity, and ordered General Bon s
division, which was standing by the Nile, to attack the
fortified earthworks. General Vial, who was in command
of General Menou’s division, was to throw himself between
the body of troops that had just attacked him and the
earthworks, with a threefold object : first, to prevent
those troops that had just attacked him from penetrating ,
secondly, to cut off the retreat of the men occupying the

THE LAND OF THE PYRAMIDS, 179O-1799 77

entrenchments, and, finally, if necessary, to attack these
entrenchments from the left.

As soon as Generals Bon and Vial were wthin range
they ordered the ist and 3rd detachments of each battalion
to arrange themselves in columns of attack, while the 2nd
and 4th detachments retained their positions, and formed
a square ^vhich was only three men deep, and advanced
in support of the storming columns.

The attacking columns of Son’s division, led by tlic
brave General Rampon, were hurling themselves with
their usual impetuosity on the entrenchments, in spite of
the fire of a numerous artillery, wiicn the Mamelukes
charged. In full gallop they dashed out of the earth-
works, but our troops had still time to halt, form front on
all sides, and receive them with lixcd bayonets and a hail
of bullets. In a twinkling the battlc-ncld was covered
with their corpses. Soon, also, our troops had taken the
entrenchments. The fleeing Mamelukes threw them-
selves in a mass on our left wing ; but there General Vial
was standing. A battalion of carabiniers, under whose
fire they had to come at a distance of five paces, produced
fearful carnage in their ranks ; many of them thre^v
themselves into the Nile and were drowned.

More than 400 camels laden ^vith baggage, and fifty
guns fell into our hands. I estimated the losses of the
Mamelukes at 2000 men, chosen cavalry. Many of the
Beys were w'oundcd or killed. Our losses amounted to
twenty or thirty dead, and a hundred and Uventy w'oundcd.
Cairo was evacuated the same night ; all the gunboats,
corvettes, brigs, and even a frigate of the Mamelukes,
were burned by us ; and on the 22nd of July our troops
entered Cairo. In the night the rabble had set fire to the
houses of the Beys and committed various excesses. Cairo,
wth more than 300,000 inhabitants, possessed the most
detestable rabble in the world.

After all these fights and pitched battles which the
troops under my command had fought against superior
forces I felt I must especially praise their demeanour and
coolness on this occasion, for this quite new kind of
warfare demanded of them a degree of patience which is
in strong contrast with the French impetuosity. If they
had completely given way to their hot temperament they

78 MEMOIRS OF NAPOLEON I

would never have conquered that which could only be
attained by extraordinary coolness and great self-control.

The cavalry of the Mamelukes showed great bravery.
They knew they were defending their fortunes, for there
wasn’t one of them on whom our soldiers could not have
found 300 or 400, and even 500, gold Louis.

In this country there was little coined money, not even
enough to pay our army ; on the other hand, there was
corn, rice, vegetables, and cattle, in abundance. The
RepulDlic could not possibly find a colony better suited to
them, or one whose soil would have been more fruitful.
The climate is very healthy, because the nights are cool.

In spite of a fortnight’s marching, hardships of every
kind, the complete lack of wine, and of everything that
can contribute to a man’s refreshment, we had no sick.
The soldiers found a satisfactory substitute in a kind of
water-melon which was found everywhere in great
profusion.

On the 5th of August I ordered General Reynier’s
division to march to El-Kanga, to the support of Cavalry-
General Leclerc, who had been engaged in desultory
fighting with a swarm of Arabs and peasants of the district,
acting at the instigation of Ibrahim Bey. Leclerc killed
about fifty peasants and a few Arabs, and occupied the
village of El-Kanga. At the same time I ordered the
division commanded by General Lannes, and that of
General Dugua, to depart.

IN PURSUIT OF THE ENEMY

In long daily marches we advanced towards Syria and
kept driving Ibrahim Bey’s army in front of us.

Before we reached Belbes we freed a portion of the
Mecca caravan which had been attacked by the Arabs
and already carried off two leagues into the desert. I
ordered these pilgrims to be conducted to Cairo under a
safe escort. Near Koraim we came upon another part of
the caravan, all merchants, who had first been captured
by Ibrahim Bey, then liberated, and finally robbed by the
Arabs. I also caused this remnant to be assembled and
conducted in like manner to Cairo.

The Arabs must have taken an enormous quantity of
booty. A single merchant assured me that he had lost

THE LAND OF THE PYRAMIDS, 1798-1799 79

shawk and other Indian wares to tlic value of 200,000
thalers. In accordance with the custom of the country
this merchant had all his sHves with him. I gave them
food and drink, and procured for them the camels necessary
for their journey to Cairo. Many of the women were very
well formed, but their faces were, as usual, veiled, a
custom which our soldiers found rather difficult to get
used to.

We reached Salihijeh, tlic last Egyptian totvn, where
there is good water. There the desert separating Syria
from Egypt begins.

Ibrahim Bey had left Salihijeh ivith his army, his
treasures, and hk women. I pursued him with the few
cavalry that I possessed, and we saw his numerous baggage-
train pass by in front of us.

A horde of Arabs consisting of 1 50 men, wliich was in
the neighbourhood, proposed lliat we should unite and
attack them, in order to share the booty. The night was
coming on, the horses were dead tired, the infantry still
far behind us. General Leelcrc attacked the rear-mard,
and, as a result, we took about fifty camels loaded ivith
tents and other objects. The Mamelukes iWthstood the
attack Hath the greatest bravery. They arc extraordinarily
brave, and would make an excellent fight cavalry-corps.
They were very richly dressed, very carefully armed, and
were riding the best horses. Evciy officer, every soldier,
had taken part in some particular light.

Ibrahim Bey ivithdrcw into the Syrian Desert. He had
been wounded in the fight.

WE LOSE OUR FLEET

I left behind in Salihijeh General Rcynier’s division
and a few general officers, who were to erect a fortress
there, and marched back towards Cairo on the 13th of
August. I had hardly got two leagues distant from
Salihijeh, when one of General Klcbcr’s adjutants brought
me news of the battle which our naval squadron had
fought at Aboukir on the ist of August. On the Gth of
July I had started from Alexandria. I had written to the
admiral that he should run into the harbour within
tivcnty-four hours, and that, in ease it would be impossible
for his fleet to do this, he should put on shore, with all

8o

MEMOIRS OF NAPOLEON I

possible speed, all the artillery and all the stores intended
for the land army, and then sail to Corfu.

As the admiral had anchored on rocks outside the
harbour of Alexandria, and as many of the ships had
already lost their anchors, he did not consider it possible
to carry out the disembarkation in this position, and laid
to off Aboukir, where there was good anchorage. I sent
engineer and artillery -officers there who agreed with the
admiral that the land could offer them no kind of pro-
tection. Therefore, if during the two or three days that
he was obliged to remain in Aboukir, in order to land the
artillery or to inspect the fairway to Alexandria, the
English were to appear, nothing would remain for him to
do but to cut his cables. It would, therefore, have been
urgently necessary to remain as short a time as possible in
Aboukir. So I left Alexandria in the firm belief that the
squadron would either run into the harbour there, or sail
for Corfu. Between the 6th and the 24th of July I had
received no news of any kind either from Rosetta or
Alexandria. From all parts of the desert the Arabs kept
galloping up and swarming around the camp continually
at a distance of a thousand yards. Eventually the rumours
of our victories and various dispositions of the troops
made on the 27th of July had the effect of freeing our
communications once more. The admiral wrote me
several letters from which I saw with astonishment that he
was still in Aboukir. I replied to him again that he
should not lose a moment in entering Alexandria, or else
sail to Corfu.

In reply the admiral informed me in a letter dated the
20th July, that several Enghsh ships had been reconnoi-
tring him, and that he was confirmed in his resolve to wait
for the enemy, who had cast anchor diagonally off Aboukir.
This strange decision, filled me with the greatest anxiety.
But it was already too late, for the admiral’s letter, written
on the 20th, only reached me on the 30th. I sent him my
adjutant. Citizen Julien, with orders not to leave Aboukir
until he had seen the fleet under sail. It was impossible
for this courier, despatched on the 30th, to arrive in time.
He was attacked on the way by a troop of Arabs, his boat
on the Nile held up, and he and his escort killed.

On the 26th the admiral wrote me that the English had

THE LAND OF THE PYRAMIDS, 1798-1799 81

sailed away, which he ascribed to lack of provisions. I
received this letter on tlie 30th by the same courier.

On the 29th he informed me that he had just heard at
last of the victory at the Pyramids and the taking of
Cairo, and that a place had been found where they could
enter the harbour of Alexandria. I received this letter on
the 5th of August. On the ist, in the evening, the
English had made their attack. As soon as he perceived
the squadron Brueys sent me an olltccr to make clear to
me his arrangements and plans ; this oHiccr, however,
perished on the svay.

As it appears, the admiral did not wish to sail for Corfu
before he was assured that it was impossible to enter the
harbour of Alexandria, and before he knew that the
army, from which he had received no news for a long
time, did not need tlie fleet owing to some possible retreat.

But if he made mistakes in this unhappy event, he
atoned for them by his glorious death.

Fate tried to prove on this, as on so many other occasions,
that, if it granted to us great superiority on land, it had
given our rivals the mastery of the sea. Great as the
defeat was, however, it cannot be ascribed to the fickle-
ness of Fortune. Fortune never forsook us ; on the con-
trary, she was better disposed towards us than ever before.
When I lay off Alexandria, and heard that the English
had been there only two or three days before, in superior
strength, I landed in spite of the terrible storm which
exposed me ■ ■ ’ " ’ ’ 'I remember that

during the fast sailing ship in

the distanci' ■ id, was signalled :

it was the Justice coming from Malta. Thereupon I
called out : “ Fortune, must you forsake me ? Give me
only five days ! ” I used to march all night and attack at
daybreak with 3000 exhausted soldiers svithout guns and
almost svithout cartridges, and in the course of five days
I had conquered Rosetta and Damanhur, that is to’ say,
I had already gained a firm footing in Egypt. During
these five days at least the squadron must have been safe
from the English, however great their numbers were.
Nevertheless, it remained exposed to danger during the
whole of the month of July. During the last days of the
month it received supplies of rice for two months. For

82 MEMOIRS OF NAPOLEON I

ten consecutive days the English showed themselves in
these waters in superior numbers. On the 29th of July
the squadron received the news of the complete conquest
of Egypt and of our entry into Cairo, and it was only
when Fortune saw that her favours were all in vain, that
she left our fleet to its fate.

THE RISING IN CAIRO ON THE 2 1 ST OCTOBER, 1798

While Desaix was remaining in Upper Egypt in order
to completely annihilate Murad Bey, a rising took place
in Cairo on the 21st of October, which was, however, put
down. Meetings were being held everywhere in the city,
and when the officer commanding the garrison. General
Dupuy, appeared, 'he found all the streets barricaded.
In order to clear his way through the crowd he ordered
his men to attack, but was killed himself in the fight.
General Bon then took over the chief command. The
alarm was given by the firing of cannon, but shooting
was soon going on in all the streets, and the populace
were beginning to plunder the houses of the rich. By the
evening calm was almost restored in the town, with the
exception of the Great Mosque, which the insurgents,
assembled in the neighbouring streets, were using as their
head-quarters.

After I had scattered, through General Veaux, the
Arabs and country people, who had hastened up in
support of the insurgents in the town. General Dom-
martin, who had taken up a position with a few guns on
a piece of rising ground, which dominated the Great
Mosque, began to bombard it on the following day.

After a bombardment lasting less than twenty minutes,
the barricades were cleared away, the square cleaned up,
and the mosque was in the hands of our troops. Calm
was now completely restored. The losses of the insurgents
were reckoned at 2000 to 2500 men. Ours amouted to
57 men.

I DETERMINE ON THE MARCH TO SYRIA, 1 799

In the new year I resolved to undertake an expedition
to Syria. In this determination I had a threefold object :
First, to render secure the conquest of Egypt by the
erection of a fortress on the far side of the desert ; secondly,

THE LAND OF THE PYRAMIDS, 1798-1799 83

to compel the Sublime Porte to declare its position with
regard to us, and, tliirdly, to prevent the English squadron
from obtaining support from Syria.

On the 22nd of Aumist, 1798, I had sent an olliccr to
Djezzar, the Pasha of Acre. He met with a bad reception,
and I obtained no answers to my questions. On the
19th of November I rvrote to the Pasha again ; he had
the messenger beheaded witliout ceremony. The French-
men who happened to be in Acre were arrested and
treated with the greatest cruelty.

The Provinces of Egypt were flooded ssith grandiloquent
orders in which Djezzar did not conceal his hostile inten-
tions, and in which he proclaimed his early arrival on the
seene.

He did more. He occupied the Provinces of Jaffa,
Ramleh, and Gaza. His advaneed troops took up a
position at El-Arish, where there were a few good wells,
and where, in the midst of the desert, ten leagues from the
frontier on Egyptian territory, there stands a fort.

So I had no choice left. I was being challenged to
fipht. I felt I must not hesitate in attacking Djezzar
himself. On the 4th of February General Rcynier joined
up tvith Ms advanced troops, under the command of the
indefatigable General Lagrange, near Katieh, which lies
far out in the desert at a distance of some three days’
march, and where I had erected considerable depots.

On the 6th of February, 1799, General Kleber arrived,
having crossed the Lake of Mcnzalch, on which several
gunboats had been built. He landed at Pelusium, and
marched to Katieh.

General Reynier started from Katieh svith his division
on the 6th of February, in order to march to El-Arish.
For several days we marched through the desert svithout
Ending a drop of svater. But all difficulties were over-
come. The enemy was attacked and routed, the village
of El-Arish taken, and the whole of the enemy’s advanced
troops were invested in the El-Arish fort.

TAKING OF EL-ARISH AND GAZA

In the meantime, Djezzar’s cavalry, supported by a
body of infantry, had taken up a position a league in our
rear, and was hemming in our besieging army. General

84 MEMOIRS OF NAPOLEON I

Kleber instructed General Reynier to make a certain
movement. At midnight the enemy’s camp was sur-
rounded, attacked, and taken. In this action one of the
Beys met his death ; tools and utensils, weapons, baggage,
everything was captured. The most of the rank and
file had time to escape, but several of Ibrahim Bey’s
subordinate leaders were made prisoners.

Trenches were dug in front of the El-Arish fort. One
of our mines was discovered, and our sappers driven
away. On the i6th of February I caused a breach-
battery, and two trench-batteries to be erected. Gunfire
went on the whole day, on the 17th. At noon on the i8th
the breach was wide enough for entry. I then called on
the enemy’s commanding officer to surrender, which he
did.

We found in El-Arish a large quantity of biscuit and
rice, 300 horses, 500 Albanians, 500 Moghrebines, 200
Anatolians and Karmanians. The Moghrebines took
service with us.

We left El-Arish on the 22nd of February. Our van-
guard lost their way in the desert, and had to suffer
extremely from lack of water. As we were short of pro-
visions we had to slaughter horses, donkeys, and camels.
On the 23rd we reached the pillars set up on the frontiers
of Asia and Africa. On the 24th we encamped on Asiatic
ground, and, on the following day, we found ourselves on
the march to Gaza. Towards ten o’clock in the morning
we perceived 3000 to 4000 mounted men riding in our
direction.

Through a couple of movements carried out with the
greatest exactness in the presence of the enemy. General
Murat, commanding the cavalry, succeeded in crossing
several mountain streams.

General Kleber proceeded to the left towards Gaza.
General Lannes, with his light infantry, supported the
movements of the cavalry, who were arranged in two
lines. Each Hne had behind it a reserve squadron. We
attacked the enemy by the high ground from which may
be seen Hebron, to which town Samson carried the gates
of Gaza. The enemy avoided the attack and retreated^;
a few of his men were killed, among them the Pasha s
Kiaya.

THE LAND OF THE PYRAMIDS,' 1798-1799 85

The 22nd Half-brigade Light Infantry distinguished
itself very much. It followed the horses at tire double,
although the men hadn’t had a regular meal for days,
and hadn’t tasted a sip of good water.

On our entry into Gaza we found 150 hundredweight
of gunpowder, a great quantity of munitions of war,
bombs, implements, more than 200,000 rations of biscuit,
and six guns.

The weather was abominable ; much thunder and
rain. Since our departure from France we hadn’t had a
thunderstorm until then.

We passed the night of the 28th February at Esdud, the
old Azotus. On the ist of March, 1799, we slept at
Ramlch, which the enemy had abandoned so hastily that
he left behind for us 100,000 rations of biscuit, a great
quantity of barley, and 1500 leather bottles which Djezzar
had intended for use on the march through the desert.

CaPTORE AND PLUNDER OF JAFFA, 7TII MARCH, 1 799

Klcbcr’s division first invested Jaffa, and then pro-
ceeded to the El-Ugeh River in order to cover tlie siege.
Eon’s division hemmed in the right-hand works of tlie
town, and Lannes’ division those on the left.

On tlie 6th of March two trench-batteries, tlie breach-
battery, and one of the mortar-batteries were ready for
the bombardment. The garrison made an attack. Then
we saw a crowd of variously dressed men of all colours
throw themselves on the brcach-batlcry. They were men
of Mograka, Albanians, Kurds, Anatolians, Karmanians,
men of Damascus and Aleppo, black men from Takrur.
They were repulsed tvith vigour, and retreated more
rapidly than they had intended.

When the morning of the 7th broke I called on the
Governor to surrender. His only answer was to have my
messenger beheaded. At seven o’clock tlie firing began.
At one o’clock I considered the breach practicable.
General Lannes made preparations for storming the town.
Netherwood, an officer attached to the staff of the Adjutant-
General, with ten carablnicis, was the first to mount the
ramparts, next came three grenadier companies of the
13th and 69th Half-brigade under the command of
Adjutant-General Rambeau.

86 MEMOIRS OF NAPOLEON I

At five o’clock we were masters of the town, which, for
twenty-four hours, was given over to pillage and to all the
horrors of war ; never did these horrors appear to me so
ghastly as on this occasion.

Four thousand of Djezzar’s troops, including eight
hundred gunners, were put to the sword. A number of
the inhabitants were massacred.

Viscount Ebrington asked me on the Island of Elba
whether I had ordered the Turks taken prisoner at Jaffa
to be butchered. To this I answered : “ Certainly, I
had a few thousand shot down. You will call that rather
strong measures, but I had already granted them a
capitulation on condition that they were not to light
against us again, and return to their homes. Instead of
doing that they had fortified themselves in El-Arish,
whieh they defended against me, and which I took by
storm. I could not take them with me as prisoners, as
I had no bread. On the other hand, they were such
rascals that I could not let them go a second time. And
so I had no choice left but to shoot them.”

During the next few days several ships arrived from
Acre laden with munitions of war and provisions ; they
were captured in the harbour. Their crews were very
astonished to find the town in our hands, for it was
believed that the garrison would hold us up for six months.
Ab'd- Allah, one of Djezzar’s generals, succeeded in hiding
himself among the Egyptians, and throwing himself at
my feet. I sent to Damascus and Aleppo more than
500 persons from the two towns, besides 400 to 500
Egyptians.

I had spared the lives of the Mamelukes : and lesser
leaders whom I had taken prisoner at El-Arish. I also
pardoned the Sheik of Cairo, Omar-Makram. I was as
merciful to the Egyptians as I was to the people of Jaffa,
but I acted sternly towards the garrison who were taken
with arms in their hands.

We found in Jaffa fifty guns, including thirty field-
pieces of European pattern, much ammunition, more
than 400,000 rations of biscuit, 200,000 hundredweight of
rice, and a quantity of soap.

THE LAND OF THE PYRAMIDS, 1798-1799 87

I FATL TO TAKE ACRE

On the 19th of March I arrived in front of Acre, and at
once ordered an attack on the fortress defended by
Djezzar Pasha and the English commodore, Sidney Smitli.
The great number of artillery which the English had
placed at the disposal of the Turks, combined with the
lack of heavy guns on our side, made the situation very
unfavourable for us. For fourteen days we did not fire a
single cannon-shot, and had to content ourselves tvith
modestly picldng up the enemy’s cannon-balls, for which
I paid one franc each.

While we were besieging Acre a Turkish army tried to
armihilatc us, but was thoroughly beaten, first near
Nazareth, and tlien by Mount Tabor.

Once, while we were besieging Acre, a grenade thrown
by Sidney Smith fell at my feet. Two soldicre, who were
standing near me, immediately covered me with their
bodies, one from the front, the other from the side, and so
formed a shelter for me. The grenade exploded and
smothered us all three with sand. IVc sank into the hole
which it made, one of the soldiers being wounded. I
made them both oflicets.

Although we made various attempts to take the place
by storm, and, in doing so lost a large number of men,
we were not successful in capturing the WTCtchcd hole,
and I resolved to start on my retreat to Egypt.

EVENTS IN EOyPT DURING MY ABSENCE

During my invasion of Syria certain events had taken
place in Lower Egypt which I should like to add here.

On the 31st of January, 1799, a portion of the Province
of Ecni-Sucf rose in rebellion. General Veaux marched
there svith a battalion of the 22nd Half-brigade and
covered the country for leagues around with the corpses
of the enemy. Order was completely restored every-
where. He himself had only three killed and twenty
wounded to report.

On the 4.th of February the English cruiser squadron
off Alexandria, having received reinforcements a short
time _ previously, began to bombard the harbour. The
English threw from fifteen to sixteen hundred '

88 MEMOIRS OF NAPOLEON I

killed nobody ; they succeeded only in shooting two
wretched houses to pieces and sinking an old ship.

On the 6th of March the squadron disappeared, and
nothing more was seen of it.

Four gunboats sailed from Suez on the ist of February,
and reached Koser on the 6th, where they found many
vessels laden with the treasures of the Mamelukes, defeated
by General Desaix in Upper Egypt. At the first cannon-
shot fire broke out on the Tagliamento, through which it
was blown up.

Citizen Durantcau, comrriandant of the third battalion
of the 32nd Half-brigade, proceeded on the 14th of
March towards the Province of Sharkieh. The village of
Horbeyt, which had risen in rebellion, was burned down,
and its inhabitants killed.

On the 5th of March General Dugua, having been
informed that a new tribe from Central Africa was advanc-
ing on the borders of the Province of Gizeh, ordered
General Lanusse to march against them. He fell upon
their camp, lay in ambush for them on several occasions,
and took from them a great number of camels, after
having killed several hundred of their men.

The Emir Hadshi, a man of weak, indecisive character,
on whom I had heaped benefits, could not resist the
intrigues going on around him, and entered himself on
the list of our enemies. He took the field with several
Arab tribes and some Mamelukes. Driven from the field,
and pursued, he lost in one day all the good things that
I had given him, besides all his own wealth, and some
members of his family who were still in Cairo, in addition
to losing the reputation of a man of honour which he had
until then possessed.

THE RISING OF THE ANGEL EL-MAHDI

Towards the end of April 1799, an event, the first of
its kind that we had ever seen, caused an insurrection in
the Province of Bahireh. A man from Central Africa
landed in Bern, collected the Arabs round him, and
proclaimed himself as the Angel El-Malidi, who is fore-
told by the prophet in the Koran. Two days later it
chanced that two hundred Moghrebines came that way,
and they likewise flocked around him. As it is written in

THE LAND OF THE PYRAMIDS, 1798-1799 89

tlic Koran that the Angel EI-Mahdi tvill descend from
Heaven, this deceiver asserted that he had come do^vn
from Heaven in the midst of the dKcrt. He was naked,
but was able to distribute quantities of gold whicli he
managed to keep very skilfully hidden. Every day he
dipped his finger in milk and moistened his lips witli it,
this being the only nourishment that he took. He pro-
ceeded to Damanhur, ovetwhelmcd there sbety men of
the Marine Legion who had been carelessly left in the
place, instead of being taken within the fordfied earth-
works at El-Ramanieh, and murdered them. Encouraged
by tins deed he inflamed the imagination of Ins disciples
to such a degree that they believed that gunpowder
would not take fire if he threw a little dust at our cannon.
They were also convinced that our musket bullets could
do no harm to the True Believers. Numberless people
bore witness to hundreds of miracles of this kind which he
performed daily.

Brigadier-General Lcfebrc with four hundred men
started off to march against tlic Angel, but as he saw that
the numbers of the enemy were increasing every minute
he was soon forced to sec the impossibility' of bringing
such a large number of fanafical people to reason. He
formed his men into a square and kept shooting all day
on these frantic people who were not to be convinced of
their error, and continued to throw themselves on our
guns. It was only in the night, when they counted their
killed and wounded — there were more than a thousand
killed — that the fanatics perceived that God no longer
works miracles.

On the 8th of May General Lanusse, who had shown
himself to be extremely energetic, and who had been
rushing about wherever there were enemies to fight,
arrived and collected 1500 men ; and soon there remained
of Damanhur nothing but a heap of ashes. Even the
Angel EI-Mahdi himself who had been wounded several
times, now felt his zeal cooling down ; he hid himself
far away in the desert, but was still surrounded by
adherents for a long time, for fanatical heads have no
room for reason.

These events contributed to the hastening of my
to Egypt.

go MEIvIOIRS OF NAPOLEON I

The appearance on the scene of the Angel El-I^Iaiidi
had been pre-arranged, and was to take place just at tlie
moment when tlic Turkish licet was expected to arrive off
Alexandria to land tlie remains of the army beaten by me
before Acre. The fitting out of this fleet,' neu-s of which
had been obtained by the i^Iamelukcs of Upper Etr^-pt
from tlie caravans, induced them to ad\*ance into Lower

they had been routed several times by
Brigadier-General Detres, an extremely brave officer, they
retreated to Sharkich. General Davout \\‘as ordered to
march tliither by General Dugua. On the 8th of ^Nlay he
attacked Effi Bey and the Bili, and after tliree of the most
prominent of the leaders under Elfi Bey had been killed
by a couple of cannon-balls, Elfi himself fled terrified into
the 'vrildcrncss.

An English ship-of-tlie-line and a frigate appeared
before Suez about the 4th of ]\Iay. There resulted a
cannonade, ^vhich the English, ho^vever, ceased as soon
as they noticed that Suez was armed witli numerous guns,
and was able to offer rcsist?,nce to tliem : the t\\'o vessels
had disappeared without Icaring a trace.

After General Lanussc had finished clearins: the Pro\nnce

_ w

of Baliireh of tlie enemy, he happened, on the 5th ofjxme,
in the %illage of Kafr-Furnig, to meet with a part}* of
htoghrebines and native inhabitants who had escaped into
Baliireh. He killed some hmidred and fifh- of them and
burned doiNTi the \illage.

THE return: march from SYRLA to EGYPT

On the 3rd of June I ai-rived at El-Arish on my return
journey from S)Tia. Tlie heat of the desert sand raised
die tliemiometer to 44^ centigrade, ivTuIe the ternperature
of tlie air rose to 34®. In order to reach the %\-eil, ^vhich
contained ratlier \s-arm, salty, <md snlphurous 'prater, ive
had to marcli ele^'cn hours daily, yet out troops drank
this ivater more greedily tlian a bottle of good champagne
in a restaurant.

On the Island of Elba I iv-as asked whether it ivas true
tliat I had poisoned mv sick men on tlie retreat from
SMia. To diis I answered : " There is a certain amount .
of truth in it. Some men of my army ivere suixering
from the plague. They had scarcely tiventy-four hours to

THE LAND OF THE PYRAMIDS, 1798-1799 91

live. I \ras compelled to break camp, and I asked Doctor
Desgenettes how they could be got away. He said that it
was useless, for tliey would not live, and besides, they
might spread the infection. I therefore told tlie doctor to
give them opium so that tliey should not be exposed to the
cruelties of the Turks who were following us. He replied
to this that he was a man of honour, that liis business was
to cure, not to kill ; and the unhappy men were left to
their fate. Perhaps he was right, although I had only
advised him to do what 1 would have wished my best
friend to do to me in a similar case.”

My entry into Cairo took place on the 14th of June.
The streets tvere filled with an enormous crowd of people.
All the Muftis, who were riding mules because the Prophet
liked riding these animab, tlic whole corps of Janissaries,
tlie Odiaks, the Agas of the d.ay and night police, the
descendants of Abu-Bckr, of Fauma, and of the sons of
several of the Saints revered by the True Believers, had
prepared to give me a reception, and surrounded me.
The head-men of the merchants went in procession in
front of me, as well as the Coptic Patriarch. The rear-
guard was formed by the Greek ainciliary troops.

The Sheiks El-Bckry, El-Shcrgauy, El-Sadat, El-Mahdi,
El-Sauy, behaved as well as I could possibly have wished.
They preached on our behalf in the mosques every day,
and their firmans (decrees) made a great impression in the
Provinces. They arc, for the greater part, descendants of
the first Caliph, and enjoy in a very special manner the
esteem of the populace.

LAND BATTLE OF ADOUKIR, EgTH JULY, 1 799

As already mentioned, the season of the year favourable
to the possibility of a landing had determined me to leave
Syria and return to Egypt.

The landing took place, in fact, on the 1 1 th ofjuly, 1799.
One hundred sailing-ships, including some man-of-war
vessels, appeared off Alexandria and anchored near
Aboular. On the 15th ofjuly the enemy disembarked,
took by storm with extraordinary bravery both the
redoubts and the Aboufcir fort, landed his artillery,
and, strengthened by the co-operation of fifty sailing
ships, with his right Bank supported by the sea, and Iris

92 MEMOIRS OF NAPOLEON I

left^ by Lake Madieh, succeeded in occupying a strong
position.

I started from my camp at the Pyramids on the 15th of
July, 1799, and entered El-Ramanieh on the 19th. Then
I marched, on Birket-Geitas, which became the centre of
my operations, and from there I rode on the 25th at six
o^clock in the morning to meet the enemy.

General Murat commanded the van. He ordered
General Destaing to attack the enemy’s right. Lieutenant-
General Lannes advanced against the left wing, and
General Lanusse supported the vanguard. A fine plain of
eight hundred yards width separated the two wings of the
enemy. Our cavalry charged into the opening and
galloped with the utmost speed into his right and left
wings. Our enemies now threw themselves into the water
in order to swim to the ships which were out at sea three-
quarters of a league from the coast. They were all
drowned. It was the most frightful scene that I have ever
beheld.

We now attacked the second line which was occupying
a very strong position. Standing out in front lay a fortified
village, in the centre stood a redoubt, connected to the
sea-coast by a line of earthworks, and flanked by more
than thirty gunboats. General Murat seized the village,
while General Lannes attacked the left wing, which was
protected by the sea. General Fugiere, in close columns,
attacked the enemy’s right. Attack and defence con-
tinued to get more and more animated. Here also the
cavalry decided the victory : they attacked the enemy,
charging suddenly into the rear of his right wing, and
causing frightful slaughter in the ranks. Next the redoubts
were taken, and our enemies were forced to throw them-
selves into the water where they were pursued by our
horsemen. All were drowned.

Now we invested the fort where the reserves, strengthened
by numerous fugitives, were posted. As I did not wish to
expose my men needlessly to danger, I had six mortars
brought up and placed so as to bombard the fort. The
shore was covered with the corpses of the enemy. Six
thousand had been counted in a short time, of whom
three thousand were buried at once.

Two hundred flags, numerous baggage, tents, forty

THE LAND OF THE PYRAMIDS, 1798-1799 93

field-picccs, Hussein Mustapha, Pasha of Anatolia, and
Commander-in-Chicf of the whole expedition, and all his
officers were captured. Such were the fruits of the
victory. We, on tlie other hand, had only one hundred
killed, and five hundred wounded.

On the following day, the 26th, I demanded the
surrender of the fort of Aboukir. The Pasha’s son and his
officers declared themselves ready to do so, but the
soldiers were of a different opinion. I therefore ordered
the bombardment to begin on tlie oytli. Although the
Turks were short of provisions and water, and the fort
was merely a heap of ruins, the besieged troops would not
surrender. At last, on the 2nd of August, our enemies
resolved, not to ask for terms of capitulation, but to lay
down their arms and to throw themselves on the mercy of
the victor. The Pasha’s son and two thousand men were
made prisonen ; in tlie fort were found three hundred
wounded men, and eighteen hundred corpses. During
the first two days of their captivity more than four hundred
Turks died as a result of having drank too much and
eaten too quickly.

I RESOLVE TO DEPART FOR FRANCE

Having, since my departure from France, received
letters on one occasion only from the Directory, namely,
on the 25th of March, 1799, before Acre, and these letters
having led me to the expectation of an approaching war
on the Continent, I felt that I must not remain any
longer absent from Trance.

But although, through my Syrian campaign, I had
destroyed the armies that threatened to flood Egypt from
the desert, I svas still obliged to await the result of the
naval expedition which was being prepared with great
zeal in the Levant (on the Island of Rhodes). The result
■ was the landing near Alexandria. As soon as the news
reached me that the Turks had landed I marched against
the enemy and annihilated him near Aboukir. Egypt
was now protected against any further invasion and
belonged completely to us.

After several diplomatic transactions I procured the
English newspapers up to the 6 th of June, 1799, through
which I learned the defeats ofjourdain in Germany '■

94 MEMOIRS OF NAPOLEON I

those of Scherer in Italy. That very hour I sailed away
with the frigates La Muiron and La Carrke, although they
were bad sailers. I felt I must not think- of danger. My
place was where my presence was most needed. Animated
by such feelings, if I had had no frigates, I would have
muffled myself up in my cloak and travelled on a bark.

I left Egypt to the excellent administration of General
Kleber. It was already all under water, and the Nile
looked finer than it had done for fifty years.

On the voyage I met various cruisers, and it is only
owing to the skilful measures taken by Rear-Admiral
Gantaume that I landed without accident in Frejus.

CHAPTER V

FORMING THC STATESMAN; 1 799-1 B05
I MAKE AN ENEMY OP MADAME DE STAEE

A fter my return from Egrot Madame dc StacI
did everything she could think of to induce me
^ to pay her a visit. She wTotc me letter after
letter. I read them, as the Abbe de Pradt said," with the
thumb,” that is to say, cursively. One day she came into
my room svithout having announced herself. At that
time I was living in my little house in the Rue Chantcrcine.
1 was in my dressing-gown at the time. So I excused
myself for having to receive her in this way. “ What ! ”
said she, “ Genius has no sc.x.” I have been told that this
lady used to push her friends into the water for the pleasure
of pulling them out again. At any cost she had to take a
part in everything. Once, during a ball at Talleyrand’s,
she came up to me unceremoniously and sat down beside
me on a sofa. She at once began the conversation.
Among other things she asked me : “ For which woman
of ancient or modem times have you the highest esteem ? ”
“ The most amiable,” I answered. “ But which one
svould you place on the highest pinnacle ? ” she asked,
and could scarcely conceal her impatience that I did not
give an answer in accordance svith her secret svish.
“ Why, Madame,” said I, “ the one who has had the
most children,” and at that I stood up. Everyone began
to laugh, whereupon she became confused. That was the
original reason for the opposition which she showed to
my rule.

Such incidents cause one more annoyance than one
thinks. I certainly acted wrongly, for I did not sufficiently
weigh the effect of a pointed word or a joke. For the rest,
it was on the recommendation of Madame de Stael, to
whom I wish to do full justice as a woman of very superior
intellect, that I appointed Benjamin Constant a member

95 -•

96 MEMOIRS OF NAPOLEON I

of the Tribunate. I have had reason to regret it, how-
ever, for he soon began to oppose me tooth and nail, and
was backed up by the whole influence of Madame de
StaePs Drawing-room. With this particular object she
gave a grand party at which she proclaimed Benjamin
Constant as a new Mirabcau. I tried to negotiate with
them, but without result. Constant promised to alter,
but he soon began to renew his opposition to me. There-
fore I banished both Madame de Stael and himself.

MY ATTITUDE ON THE i8tH BRUMAIRE, QTH NOVEMBER, 1 799

Never was a resolution so easily carried through, so
fervently was it desired, as that of the i8th Brumaire.

My whole part in the execution of the coup <Petat con-
sisted in assembhng at an appointed hour the crowd of
my visitors and marching on at their head to seize the
executive power of the State. From my doorstep I led
them to this conquest without having informed them
beforehand of my object. In their company I was inspired
by the general enthusiasm, and I repaired to the tribunal
of the Council of Veterans to thank them for the
Dictatorship which they were handing over to me.

There has been much excited discussion — and there
will be for a long time more discussion — as to whether we
did not infringe the laws, and whether we ^ were not
criminals. That is all mere visionary talk, which at best
is only fit for books, or oratorical platforms, but which
must yield to inevitable necessity. One might just as
well make a seaman responsible for the damage when he
cuts down the masts of his ship to keep it from sinking.
The fact is that our country would have been lost without
us, and that we saved it. ‘Therefore the originators oi
this great coup d’itat, instead of justifying themselves,
must proudly answer like that Roman of old : “ We give
the public assurance that we have saved our country ,
come, let us offer sacrifices to the gods for it ! ”

I LOSE AND WIN THE BATTLE OF MARENGO, JUNE l800

When Melas evacuated Turin he left a garrison behind
in the citadel. Tureau seized the town and invested tne
fortress, but he had to maintain his connection wit

FORMING THE STATESMAN, 1799-1805 97

Chabran who was besieging Fort Bardo. His forces
were so weak that he was only able to invest the citadel of
Turin. Then Chabran succeeded in taking Fort Bardo,
in occupying Aosta and Chivasso, and in pushing for-
ward as far as the left bank of the Po. The divisions of
Monnier, Boudet, Watrin, and Victor, were stationed
near Marengo. Loison rvas besieging Pizzighetonc,
occupying Cremona, and watching Mantua. Monccy
came up over the St. Bernhard ivith the divisions of
Lorge and Lapoype, each of these divisions being 4000 men
strong.

During the battle of Marengo, Lapoype had occupied
Pavia, and had advanced as far as tlic Po in order to be in
a position to turn towards the Ticino in case Mclas tried
to pass over to the left bank of the Po with tire object of
cutting his way through to Milan. Chabran and Lapoype
would then have formed a body of ia,ooo to 15,000 men,
who had pushed forward, under Moncey, as far as the
left bank of the Ticino and would have given tlie army
time to cross the Po again and withdraw beliind the
Ticino to prevent the army of Mclas from crossing.

I had at Marengo : Watrin witli 5000 men, Monnier
with 5000, Boudet with 6000, Victor with 6000, the Con-
sular Guard svith 1000, and the cavalry with 3000, which
together made about 30,000 men. I had sent Tureau
svith 3000 men to Turin, and Chabran and Lapoype,
svith 5000 men, to the left bank of the Po. Lorge wth
5000 men was on the way, and Loison with 6000 men was
in Pizzighetone : that was altogether about 20,000 men.
If I had waited about a fortnight I would have had a
united force of 50,000 men, but I was obliged to besiege
the citadel of Turin, that of Milan (3000 men), and those
of Cremona and Ancona (1500 men). Moreover, I had
to keep under observation Pizzighetone and Piacenza,
where there were 1200 men, besides Mantua, and the
body of troops that came from Frioul, and was getting
stronger every day. Finally ! had to keep the left bank of
the Po occupied, for it was not merely a question of
besieging Melas but of taking him prisoner. And if that
body of troops had not been there, Melas might have had
to cross the Po at Valenca, turn as rapidly as possible
towards the Ticino, cross it and reach Cassano, and from

g8 MEMOIRS OF NAPOLEON I

there should have tried to force his line of retreat before
my army could get back into the Milanese.

The French Army was not in its natural position, for in
its rear lay Mantua and Austria. There was no possible
line of retreat for the army except along the left bank of
the Po, and, therefore, it was not advisable to leave this
connecting line without defence. As a general rule, on
the day of battle all scattered detachments should be
called back. It was not possible to do so in this case
without losing all the advantages of the campaign. If we
had been beaten, we could not have been reproached for
this mistake, which would have been attributed — and
rightly so — to the loss of the battle. The advantage of
the position taken up by these troops would have made
itself noticeable, for the army would have owed its salva-
tion to it, besides the possibility of waiting for reinforce-
ments from Switzerland and France. Melas, on the other
hand, could only hope to fall back on Mantua and take
up a naturally defensive position. ' '

Besides all this, the attack on Fort Bardo had dis-
couraged the troops. Even Berthier lost hisi head. For-
tunately I came up and succeeded in getting the troops
through the defile. If I had not succeeded in getting the
artillery through, I should have been in a very dangerous
position, but it was possible to let the infantry march past.
Besides, I could then have fallen back on Turin, which
had behind it an abundance of guns and the town of
Grenoble. In Stradella I would have lost almost every-
thing. Ott attacked Lannes and fortified himself in
Pavia. I drove him out of it. People believed that I was
waiting for Melas in Stradella. I remained there for two
days, but as he- did not appear, I was afraid that he was
turning against Suchet. I therefore advanced and moved
Desaix to Rivolto.

After the battle of Montebello on the gth in which
Lannes routed a portion of the Austrian Army, our army
moved in order to cross the Scrivia. The vanguard,
under the command of General Gardanne had thoroughly
beaten the enemy on the 13th June while he was defend-
ing the approaches to the Bormida and the three bridges
which he had near Alessandria, taking from him two
cannon and one hundred prisoners.

FORMING THE STATESMAN, 1799-1805 99

General Chabran’s division arrived at the same time
along the Po opposite to Valenca, to prevent the enemy
from passing over the river. In this way Melas found
himself hemmed in between the Bormida and the Po.
The only way of retreat to Genoa which remained to him
after the battle of Montebello was thus cut off. The
enemy seemed to have no plan, and showed indecision in
his movements.

At daybreak on June I4tli the adversary with strong
forces proceeded to cross the Bormida by means of three
bridges, in order to clear an outlet for his army, and thus
commenced rvith the utmost vigour the famous batde of
Marengo, which decided the fate of Italy and the Austrian
Army.

Four times during tlic battle we found ourselves retreat-
ing and four times attacking. More than sKty guns
were lost and taken again by each side at various points
and at different times. There were over twelve cavalry
attacks tvith varying results.

It was three o’clock in the, afternoon. On the mag-
nificent plain of San Giuliano 10,000 infantry were
marching on our right wing. They were supported by a
line of cavalry and a strong force of artillery. I placed in
opposition to them the Grenadiers of the Guard who
stood like a bulwark of granite in the midst of the enor-
mous plain. Nothing could move them. Infantry,
cavalry, artillery : everything possible was put into the
fight against them. But it was all in vain. There one
could really see what a handful ol brave men can do.

In consequence of this stubborn resistance the enemy’s
left tving was held in its place, and our right remained
firm till the arrival of General Monnier, who seized the
village castle of Ceriolo. Thereupon the enemy’s cavalry
made a furious onslaught on our left tving, which was
already badly shaken, and this attack hastened its retreat.

The enemy now advanced along the whole line and
kept up a fire of case-shot from over a hundred cannon.
The roads were covered with fugitives, wounded men,
and wreckage of every description, and the batde seemed
lost. The enemy was allowed to approach within
musket-shot as far as the village of San Giuliano, where
Desaix’s division, with eight light guns stood in battle

100 MEMOIRS OF NAPOLEON I

order. All the fugitives assembled behind it. Already
the eneniy was making mistakes which enabled one to
foretell his catastrophe. He was spreading his wings too
far out.

My presence restored to life the morale of the troops.
“ Boys/’ I said to them, “ remember that it is my custom
to sleep on the battle-field.”

With shouts of “ Long live the Republic ! ” “ Long
live the First Consul ! ” Desaix attacked at the double.
In a moment the enemy was overthrown. General
Kellerman, who, %vith his brigade of heavy cavalry, had
been protecting the retreat of our left wing, led a charge
so furious and so well timed, that 6000 Grenadiers with
General Zach, the adversary’s chief of the General Staff,
were made prisoners, and many enemy generals were
killed.

The whole army followed this movement. The enemy’s
right was cut off, and confusion and terror spread through
his ranks.

The Austrian cavalry had ridden towards the centre to
protect the retreat. Brigadier-General Bessieres, at the
head of the Grenadiers of the Guard, now led an attack
with equal force and skill, and broke through the line of
the enemy’s cavalry, which brought about the retreat of
the whole hostile army.

We had captured fifteen flags and forty guns and had
taken 6000 to 8000 prisoners. More than 6000 of the
enemy were left on the battle-field. Our losses were also
considerable, for they amounted to 600 killed, 1500
wounded, and 900 prisoners.

General Berthier’s uniform was riddled with bullets,
and several of his adjutants had their horses shot under
them. But one great loss to the army, and no less a loss to
the Republic, took away all rejoicing from our hearts.
General Desaix was struck by a bullet at the beginning of
the attack by his division, and died immediately. He had
only time to say to young Lebrun who was near him :

" Make haste and tell the First Consul that I die with^the
regret of not having done enough to live for posterity.”

Desaix had reached the head-quarters only three days
before. He was eager for the fray, and had said to his
adjutant two or three times the day before : “ It is a long

FORMING THE STATESMAN, 1799-1805 loi

time now since I fought in Europe ; the bullets don’t
know me any longer, something will surely happen to
me.” When, in the midst of the hottest fire, the death of
Desaix was reported to me, the only words that escaped
from my lips were : “ Why is it not given to me to
weep ? ’’

It is an open question whether Melas acted -wisely in
agreeing to terms of capitulation, or whether he would
have done better by retreating to Genoa, where he could
easily have taken ship. He gave up the strongholds, but
he kept his troops, and it is troops tliat are required in
tvar ! Perhaps he did well, but I think that I should have
acted differently had I been in his place. Besides, brilliant
as tills victory was, it did not bring about peace, and
Austria saved her army.

IIASSENA COULD HAVE HELD OUT LONGER IN GENOA WHILE

I WAS DEFEATING THE AUSTRIAN ARMY IN THE HELD

Massena could quite easily have held out ten days
longer in beleaguered Genoa. He had only 16,000 men
to feed ; and the inhabitants of Genoa numbered about
160,000. A tenth part of the provisions requisite for the
population would have sufficed to feed the French Army,
and Massena could easily have obtained that amount
daily. I even grant that the handing over of a tenth part
of the provisions might have noticeably injured the
general health of the Genoese population, and perhaps
have caused the death of a Jew hundred Genoese- But
what would that have mattered if thereby Genoa was
held ten days longer ? Massena knew of my arrival, and
that a great battle was being fought on the plain of
Alessandria which would decide the fate of Italy. Of
course, he understood the enormous importance of
Genoa, by which a numerous Austrian army-corps was
tied up. He should not have hesitated to fight sanguinary
battle in order to help me to victory. How is one to
explain his action in shrinking from the stem measures
which would have procured food for his soldiers for a few
days longer ? I, for my part, do not take this rosy view of
war, and, in my eyes, the holding of Genoa for one day
longer was worth more than the whole population of the
toivn.

102

MEMOIRS OF NAPOLEON I

ATTEMPTS ON MY LIFE : EXPLOSION OF THE INFERNAL

MACHINE

After the unsuccessful attempt of Louis in June 1800
the Bourbons had lost hope, and resolved to rid them-
selves of me by murder. I believe that the number of
murderous attempts on my life undertaken by Chouans
and Royalists amounts to six. All were discovered before
their execution, with the exception of the horrible plan,
by means of an infernal machine, which the murderers
tried to carr^^ out in the evening of the 4th Nivose
(24th December), 1800.

An oratorio was being sung in the Opera House, and
the artistes wished me to hear it. But as I had spent the
greater part of the day in the Council of State, I was very
fatigued and had fallen asleep after dinner (about seven
o’clock) on a sofa in my wife’s drawing-room. When I
woke up she begged me to take a little recreation, but I
had little inclination to accede to her wishes. As, how-
ever, Generals Bessieres and Lannes had come at the
same moment, I yielded to her wishes, and got into the
carriage with the two officers. The carriage was sur-
rounded by the usual escort — about a dozen mounted
Grenadiers. Two of them were riding near the outrider
about twenty yards in front of the carriage. After we had
passed the railings of the Place du Carrousel, and intended
getting into the Rue Richelieu, we had to drive through
the Rue de I’Echelle and the Rue Saint-Nicaise. At the
end of the Rue Saint-Nicaise a small two-wheeled cart
was standing, on which lay a barrel, which looked exactly
like the barrels which are used in Paris for watering the
streets.

That was the infernal machine. Some Chouans had
come to Paris to place it there. Among the number
were to be found, as I have been assured, Limoelan,
Saint-Rejant, Coster, Saint-Hilaire, and Joyaut._ Limoelan
had taken a few steps towards my carriage, in order to
assure himself that it was really that of the First Consul.
He received a kick from one of the Grenadiers riding in
front, which knocked him down. But he picked himsen
up again quickly, ran with all speed to the little cart, and
set fire to the infernal machine. But the carriage of the

104

MEMOIRS OF NAPOLEON I

THE GREATEST MISTAKE THAT I MADE DURING THE CONSULATE

The expedition to San Domingo was one of the greatest
acts of folly that I have committed. If I had succeeded,
it would only have served to enrich the Noailles and the
Rochcfoucaulds. _ I believe that Josephine, being a creole,
had also a certain influence in the matter of t&s under-
taking ; not directly, of course, but a wife who is living in
close companionship with her husband always exercises
an influence on him. From the administrative point of
view it is the greatest mistake that I have made. I ought
to have treated tvith the black cliieftains as with the
authorities of a province ; I ought to have appointed
negroes as officers in their regiments, and made Toussaint-
Louverturc viceroy. Instead of sending troops I ought to
have left everything to the black men, or, at most, have
sent a few wliite officials, for instance, a treasurer, and
required that the white men should marry negro women.
In this way tlie negroes would not have seen any armed
wliite men around tliem, and would have acquired
confidence in my policy. The colony would have an-
nounced the freedom of the slaves. Certainly I should
have lost the Island of Martinique, for the black men
would have been free. It is true tliat by the liberation of
tlie negroes I should have lost in territorial strength, but
it would have been done in a legitimate manner for
I intended giving them land.

Colonel Vincent of the Engineers was the only one Mth
whom I consulted concerning the proposed expedition,
and he tried to dissuade me from the enterprise, advising
me tliat it would be better to treat with the negroes than
to destroy them. Everything that he prophesied came
true.

THE BREAK WITH ENGLAND IN MAY 1803

The English were determined to compel us to take the
daring decision — ivliich we took only after much hesitation
— of declaring war. They were only able to take a few
ships, a few colonies, from us, but I wanted to spread
terror in London, and said beforehand that they would
shed tears of blood over this war. The King’s Ministers
had caused him to tell lies to the Continent of Europe.

FORMING THE STATESMAN, 1799-1805 105

No preparations for war were taking place in France, and
no treaties of any kind tvith other Powers were being
negotiated. Not a single note had been delivered to me.
Lord Whitworth was forced to admit this. And yet the
English Government tried to arouse passions ssath the
help of such base jirete-xts ! For sk months I had been
suffering from the impudence of England. The English
took this for weakness on our part, and became more
pressing in their demands. It went so far tliat the
Ambassador dared to say to me : “ Do this, or I shall
leave in a week.” Is a great nation to be addressed
in this manner ? I answered him : “ Put it down in
rvriting, and your observations shall be brought before
the Government.” “ No,” said he, “ I have instructions to
deliver the message by svord of mouth.” Was that not an
unheard-of way of negotiating? They were mistaken
when they thought that they could prescribe laws for a
nation of forty million people 1 They believed I was
afraid of war, as I might lose my authority. If the necessity
arose I could have had two million men. The result of
the tint war was that France became greater by the
addition of Belgium and Piedmont ; the result of the
second war was to be the consolidation of our federative
system.

ENGLAND APPROVES OF ATTEMPTS ON MY UFE — ORGANI-
ZATION OF A POWERFUL CONSPIRACY. THE DUKE
d’eNGIIIEN ALSO TAKES PART IN IT — ^ARREST OF MOREAU,
PICHEGRU, AND CADOUDAL — ^IVIIAT THESE THREE IN-
TENDED DOING — SUiaDE OF CADOUDAL, AND SHOOTING
OF THE DUKE d’eNGHIEN

The Treaty of Amiens lasted eighteen months. In
May 1803 the King of England, in his speech from the
throne, announced the beginning of a new war, and from
the commencement of this sanguinary conflict the French
Government expressed its intention of carrying hostilities
into the heart of old England. In the years 1803 and
1804 numerous camps were established on the coast at
Boulogne, Dunkirk, and Ostend, and powerful fleets
were equipped in Brest, Rochefort, and Toulon. All the
dockyards along the sea-coast, and all the wharves on the
rivers were being covered with flat-bottomed boats.

io6 MEMOIRS OF NAPOLEON I

gunboats, and transport ships of all Hnds, and millions of
hands were engaged in constructing small harbours along
the English Channel for the accommodation of the
numerous flotilla intended for the invasion.

In England tlie whole population rushed to arms.
Pitt himself gave up the peaceful occupations of a Chan-
cellor, put on uniform, girded himself with a sword, and
thought of nothing but instruments of war, battalions,
and batteries. The revered English Monarch left his
palace and spent a great part of his time in the midst of
his troops. Gamps, as numerous as those of the . French,
were established in the counties of Kent and Sussex, at
Dover and Deal. .

The rival armies watched each other silently, separated
only by the Channel, "which was covered by the English
ships.

The English Mim’stry did everytliing possible to draw
the attention of the continental Powers to my plans. But
Russia, Austria, Prussia, and Spain, were all either alHed
to, or friendly to, France whom almost aU Europe obeyed.
The English efforts to fan to a flame the civil war in
La Vendee, which until then had served English interests
so very well, also failed. The inhabitants of the west of
France had completely changed their minds. Through
the concordat concluded with the Pope I had won over
the priests to my side, and the poorer classes were also
grateful to me, owing to the numerous works of public
utility in wliich I gave them employment. Finally,
considerable sums of money had been granted to the
people of La Vendee for the rebuilding of the houses
destroyed or burnt by order of the Committee of Public
Welfare.

And so, as long as I ruled, there was nothing to be
hoped for, either from the continental Powers, or from
the Royalists of La Vendee. Circumstances were always
of such a nature that the English Ministry considered it
necessary to create a diversion.

The English Government were very often misled by the
illusions of the Royalists, and on various occasions were
induced to engage in very unfortunate enterprises. Besicms
this, the English Government had a great opinion of the
power and the help to be obtained from the Jacobin

FORMING THE STATESMAN, 1799-1805 107

party. They let themselves be convinced that a large
number of these Jacobins, dissatisfied svith Bonaparte,
svere disposed to unite their efforts with those of the
Royalists, and that they also had the support of various
envious generals. At the head of these generals was
Moreau. He was dissatisfied, for, since his marriage, he
had been strongly influenced by his wife and his mother-
in-law, two ambitious and plotting creoles from the Islc-
of-France. He set himself openly against me, publicly
condemned the concordat, and the regulations of the
Legion of Honour, and became reconciled with Pichegru,
who had been his companion-in-arms in the Dutch and
Rhine armies. Moreau had, indeed, declared Pichegru
to be an enemy of the Republic in an order of the day in
Fructidor of the year VII (1797), during the time follow-
ing the Peace of Amiens ; nevertheless, a correspondence
had developed between Moreau and Pichegru. Their
reconciliation was complete and sincere, and the Party of
which I have just spoken could count on his support.

An agent in Munich and another in Stuttgart asked
for the necessary money to support the Party with which
they were in correspondence, and which, as they asserted,
would not hesitate to kindle the fire of civil war in France.
Abb^ Rattel had connections in Abbeville, Amiens, and
especially in Artois, and was lavish in the finest promises.
In London there were 250 to 300 Chouan officers who
were in constant touch with Brittany and Normandy.
Extensive warrants of authority and considerable sums of
money were sent to Munich. The chief command of the
cruiser squadron of the Scheldt and Somme was entrusted
to Sidney Smith, and a cutter was placed under the
command of Captain Wright to carry out the plans of
Georges Cadoudal.

On the 2 1 St of August, 1804, Captain Wright brought
over from England to France Georges Cadoudal, Ville-
neuve, Lahaye, Saint-Hilaire (two of those who had
taken part in the criminal attempt of the 3rd Nivose),
Querelle, La Bonte, Picot, Troche, Jean Marie, all men
of proved courage. They were landed on the rocky
coast near Biville, between Dieppe and Trdport, in the
neighbourhood of which was a small property whose
owner had already beep won over to the Party. He gave

io8 MEMOIRS OF NAPOLEON I

them the prearranged signal. From the top of the cliff
he threw a rope into the sea by means of which the men
climbed up the precipitous side of the cliff. At this spot
the face of the cliff rosj unusually steeply from the sea,
and had, in consequence of its loneliness, completely
escaped the notice of the coastguard and the Customs
officers.

The day after the landing was spent by Georges and
his companions on the estate, and they journeyed towards
Paris the following night. On the way secret resting-
places had been prepared, so tliat they could rest by day
and continue their journey by night.

On the loth of December Captain Wright succeeded in
landing a second band of conspirators which consisted of
Coster-Saint-Victor (also concerned in the affair of the
3rd Nivose), Lemercier, Tamerlan, Lelan, and the
Imigri noble Armand de Polignac. At the same time
General Lajolais, who had served under Moreau and
Pichegru, and whose wife had been Pichegru’s mistress,
was making numerous journeys to London. He brought
over the letters exchanged by the two generals, and
announced that Moreau was prepared to undertake
anything and everything against me. He added that the
moment and the circumstances were favourable, and that
no time should be lost. In consequence of this Captain
Wright effected a tliird landing on the i6th of January on
the rocky coast of Biwlle, and put ashore Generals
Pichegru and Lajolais, Rusillion, Rochelle, Armand
Gaillard, all Vendeeans and Ghouans, besides the emigri
nobles Jules de Polignac and De Riviere. The latter was
the chief confidant of the Count d’Artois. About fifty
more Chouans were landed on the coasts of Brittany and
Poitou, and wended their way, separately, and by different
roads, to Paris.

I may fairly say that during the months from September
1803 to January 1804 1 was sitting, as it were, on a volcano.
Three kinds of people had been landed on the coast at
Biville, Chouans and Vendeeans, a wretched rabble
accustomed to crime and murder, nobles like Polignac
and Riviere, and finally, such as had been employed
more or less under Pichegru during tlie Revolution. ^

Just at this time a certain Lecierc, one of the Abbe

FORMING THE STATESMAN, 1799-1805 109

Ratel’s agents in Abbeville, w'as arrested. They seized
his papers, among which was found a large amount of
correspondence dealing svith unimportant espionage, but
some mysterious reports attracted the attention of the
authorities. Mention was made of the landing of Chouans
who intended to prepare a great blow, and this event, it
svas stated, was near its accomplishment. Tlie notorious
Mihdc de la Touche, who had been a passionately zealous
Jacobin, and was angry with me because I had banished
him to the Island of Oleron, had betaken himself to
London. Here he had been received by princes of the
House of Bourbon, had conversations with the Bishop of
Arras, and had also been introduced to some of the
Ministers of State. He was sent from London to Munich
where he discovered the local agents. From there he
went to Paris and corresponded for some time svith the
various agents in Munich and Stuttg.irt. But as he had
no confidence in the {migr/s, and hated England like
poison, he resolved to disclose everything to the police,
who advised him to continue his correspondence as
before. But, as he tvas not trusted, an officer of the
garrison of Strasburg, whose loyalty was not in doubt,
was sent to Germany, where he obtained confirmation of
Mehec’s statements from the Bourbon agents.

In consequence of the unusual watchfulness of the
Strasburg police it was discovered that there was a strange
coming and going of certain persons in the Grand Duchy
of Baden. A certain Massey, an agent of the enemy
party, had his dwelling with the Duke d’Enghicn in
Ofienburg. He acted as correspondent for the conspirators
in the interior of France for whom he obtained financial
support. The Prince himself had often come to Stras-
burg, paid visits several times a week to the left bank of
the Rhine under the pretext of shooting game, and had
thus had the opportunity of meeting various agents.
A certain Baroness Reich, who had long been under
suspicion, seemed also to be very busy, and was more
active than usual. Finally, in the month of September,
the police of Paris had arrested various Chouans and
Brigants who had not been included in the amnesty.
They were in Paris without permission, and were unable
to give any sufficient reason for their presence in the

no MEMOIRS OF NAPOLEON I

capital. Among the men arrested were Picot and Querelle
who had landed on the cliffs of Biville. .

The coincidence of all these circumstances obviously
proved that a plot -^vas being hatched. One night,
towards the end of January 1804, I read the report in
which aU these accounts were collected. I thought that
if I prosecuted a certain number of the imprisoned
Chouans, the hope of being pardoned would perhaps
induce one or other of them to make disclosures. So I
began by having Querelle condemned, who was described
on the lists of the Chouans as a surgeon.

This man was brought before a court-martial by the
Chief Justice and condemned to death. As he was being
led to the place of execution, he asked to be allowed to
make a statement. He promised to make important
revelations. General Lauriston, who was in my service at
the time, arrived just in time to postpone the execution.
Then Attorney Real went to the prison, and Querelle
admitted that he had landed on the coast at Biville from
an English cutter along with Georges Cadoudal and
several others. He gave the names of aU the places
where they had spent the daytime during the journey to
Paris, and added that Georges Cadoudal was in Paris
at that very moment for the purpose of murdering me.
Several officers were at once sent to the various places
where the conspirators had found refuge.

The result of these investigations "vvas the discovery of
the two other landings above-mentioned. In spite of that,
the names of the persons who had landed could not be
obtained ; however, it %vas learnt that a person of great
importance, for whom aU the others showed much respect,
had taken part in the third landing. Further, the
authorities were convinced that a new landing would
take place ver^* shortly. In consequence of this Savar)^
proceeded with a detachment of gendarmes to the coast
at Biville and occupied every means of egress. He had
also with him some one wffio could imitate the signals, m
order to deceive those on board the ship, and arrest them
as soon as they had set foot on the coast. ^

As a result of the information -^vhich they had received,
the authorities also arrested Bouvet de Lozier, an imigri,
and owner of a house in Saint-Germain, besides severa

FORMING THE STATESMAN, 1799-1805 iii

other people. The accused were interrogated and placed
face to face. Everything that was already knotvn was
confirmed, but nothing new tvas learnt.

Towards the end of February 1804 Bouvet de Lozier in
despair had hanged himself in prison. The warder,
however, who had heard a suspicious sound in his cell,
came in just in time, cut him down, and tlius saved his
life. The warder at once fetched a higher official, and as
the latter arrived he found Bouvet surrounded by surgeons.
He was still quite purple in the face, and his features
were distorted. “ We have been betrayed ! ” he shouted
scornfully. “ How many brave men are to die because
the traitor Moreau has deceived us ! He told us that the
army was with him ; he has fetched from London
Pichegru and many other important persons, and now
that we have come he abandons us, and wc die as his
victims.”

The Chief Justice, who had been informed of these
statements, asked for my authority to have General
Moreau arrested. But to me it was essential first of all to
find out whether Pichegru was really in Paris, for this had
not as yet been proved. Two hours aftenvards, a former
monk, a brother of Pichegru, was arrested in his dwelling
in the Place Vendome. He was a man of a very quiet
temperament, and he admitted at once that he had seen
his brother three times in the last ten days, and that he
had reproached him for ciqsosing himself to the disgraceful
death of a criminal. Tliat was all that was needed. The
Chief Justice, in accordance with Article Ten of the
Constitution, immediately issued a warrant for the arrest
of General Moreau for having conspired together with
Georges Cadoudal and Pichegru against the Republic
and the life of the First Consul. Coming back from his
country-seat, “ Grosbois,”hewas arrested midway behveen
there and Paris by a Colonel of Gendarmes. When his
carriage was stopped, and the Colonel announced Ms
intention, Moreau began to laugh and followed him to
the Law Court. When he had arrived there he demanded
to see the warrant for his arrest, but when he had read the
names of Georges Cadoudal and Piehegru he turned pale,
and appeared to be as much disconcerted as he had
before been merry.

1 12 MEMOIRS OF NAPOLEON I

A fourth landing on the coast at Biville was just about
to take place, when an enemy frigate appeared and
signalled to Captain Wright, who at once put out to sea
again. It is supposed that the enemy had just received
news of the proceedings in Paris. If it had not been for
this incident a very important personage would doubtless
have landed.

At ^ this time people were horrified at the supposed
injustice with which Moreau had been treated. It was
asserted that he was the victim of my ambition and
jealousy. Pichegru, they said, had never for a moment
left London. They could prove his alibi, and then the
enemies of Moreau would be put to shame. At the same
time the police displayed uncommon activity. A des-
cription of the sixty Brigants who were in the capital for
the purpose of overtlirowing the Government was printed.
Pichegru and Gadoudal were driven into a corner, yet the
poHce were not successful in arresting them, although
they had followed their trail to their hiding-places, and-
knew where Gadoudal had slept three nights before, and
where Pichegru had slept two nights before. The police
agents were like bloodhounds ; they had scented out the
track and worried the conspirators without cessation.

On the 5th of February the Legislative Council made
a law imposing the death penalty on anyone who gave
shelter to the Brigants.

Pichegru was betrayed by a man to whom he had
entrusted his secret. 100,000 francs was the reward for
the betrayal. At two o’clock in the morning of the 25th
of February, the police agents succeeded in entering
Pichegru’s bedroom by means of a key which had been
given them, and rushed to a small commode on which his
pistols were lying. Although taken by surprise, Pichegru,
a man of enormous strength and of equal courage, defended
himself with his fists like a madman, and to such effect
that the police were obliged to put him in fetters and
take him to the police station in his shirt. As he saw that
further resistance was useless, he at length ceased to
struggle, and allowed himself to be questioned and taken

to prison. . ,,,

Until then public .opinion as to Moreau’s guilt was still
very doubtful ; but as soon as it was known that Pichegru

FORMING THE STATESMAN, 1799-1805 113

had been arrested, Moreau rvas abandoned by almost
everybody, and rvas supported only by his partisans.

Georges Cadoudal and about twenty others of his
partisans had not yet been caught. As I was afraid that
they might succeed in escaping, I adopted an c.\pcdicnt,
not used till then, which also proved to what degree I was
supported by public opinion. I proclaimed a state of
siege in Paris, and no one was allowed to leave tlie city
except by day and only tluough fifteen gates. The
Consular Guard and the whole garrison bivouacked
round the town, and sentries and other posts were placed
fifty paces apart right round the circumference of the city.
Nobody was allowed to leave the town without first being
seen by the policemen on duty. They knew personally
the evil-doers whose description was posted up cvcrytvhere.

Walks in the Bois de Boulogne and in the environs of
Paris were forbidden. The state of siege lasted six weeks,
and deprived the people of all their favourite customs and
rccreauons without the least complaint being uttered.

At last, on the gth of March, it became known that at
four o’clock in the afternoon Georges Cadoudal was to
drive over the Pont-Royal in a light vehicle, in order to
seek refuge in the neighbourhood of the Panthdon. Con-
sequently, all the precautionary measures tvere taken, and
a few policemen were stationed on the bridge. At the
time given Cadoudal drove rapidly over the bridge ; he
was driving the carriage himself. When he had reached
the Place du Pantheon he noticed that the house in which
he intended taking refuge was surrounded by police. He
therefore turned round and met tlic two officials who had
been following him. One of them seized the reins of his
horse, but Georges brought him down with a pistol-shot,
opened the door of the carriage, and jumped out, at the
same time wounding the second police officer. But in the
meantime he had been recognised by the crowd of people
who came rushing up. He was surrounded amidst shouts
of : “ That is Georges ! That is Georges ! ” He was
then taken to the police station, and, after a preliminary
questioning, locked up. All his accomplices were there-
upon seized, and the state of siege in Paris was raised after
the last arrest had been made.

While in prison Pichegru had to undergo various

1 14 MEMOIRS OF NAPOLEON I

judicial^ examinations. He denied that he had come to
Paris with Georges Cadoudal, that he had even seen him.
But when he perceived that everything had been found
out, he put an^ end to his life himself on the 4 th of April
by throttling himself. Nobody mourned his fate. It had
been proved — and he himself did not even deny it — ^that
he had betrayed his country, that he belonged to the
Bourbon party, and was paid by England. He would
have been condemned to death, not only on account of
his plot against me, but also because of his former betrayals.

Moreau was obdurate in his assertion that he was an
enemy of Pichegru. He denied, further that he had seen
him, and maintained that he did not even know the place
where the two, according to his accusers, intended to
meet ; he also denied persistently having seen Georges
Cadoudal.

On the 15 th of May the Public Prosecutor read the
indictment before the Criminal Court, although accord-
ing to the war laws the accused should have been brought
before a court-martial, which would have delivered
judgment within twenty-four hours. To this, however,

I declined to give my consent. The case was heard by
the Criminal Court of the Seine ; it went on for a long
time, and for several days occupied the attention of all
Paris. Memorials in favour of the accused were scattered
abroad in a most generous manner, and the defence were
given the utmost liberty. When it was proved that
Moreau, in spite of his continual denials, had seen Georges
Cadoudal, he became an object of contempt. Georges
Cadoudal, De Riviere, Bouvet de Lozier, Armand de
Polignac, Lajolais, Coster, and others, were condemned
to death, some received two years’ imprisonment. Moreau,
who, by consent, was found guilty under less incriminat-
ing circumstances, was sentenced to two years’ imprison-
ment, and the next day, having been released by my act
of clemency, set out for the United States of America,
after having disposed of all his possessions. I remitted the
death sentence on several of the condemned rnen, their
punishment being commuted to a few years’ imprison-
ment. The others were executed on the Place de la
Greve, to the great satisfaction of the public.

The trials took place — ^it is surely well to establish the

FORMING THE STATESMAN, 1799-1805 115

fact — in the presence of all Europe, for the ambassadors
and all the foreign diplomatic agents were present at all
the sittings of the Criminal Court of Justice. It was
shown that Pichegru had become reconciled with Moreau,
that he had come to Paris, that various meetings had
taken place between them, and that Cadoudal had been
present at three of these meetings.

The first meeting between Moreau, Pichegru, and
Cadoudal, was held by night on the Boulevard de la
Madeleine. “ Here I am,** said Pichegru. “ No time
must be lost in overthrowing the First Consul.” Moreau
said : “ I can accomplish nothing against tlie First

Consul as long as he is alive, but when he is dead I can
do everything against him. Kill the First Consul, and the
Senate, the Army, and the people will appoint me in his
place. I will change the commanders of the troops in the

I

want to be Third Consul.** — ^**^That is impossible,” said
Moreau. “ If it were known that I had even spoken to
you, I should be a lost man. I should not even have my
valet on my side.*’ — ” That is all a farce,” said Cadoudal.
“As soon as you tw’O, Moreau and Pichegru, get into
power, you Avill have me shot. I therefore declare to you
quite openly that Bonaparte is as good as another.”

At the end of the conversation Moreau promised to
seek out his friends, and to see what w’as best to be done.
He sounded several of them, but it is supposed that he did
not disclose all his plans to them, and he became con-
vinced that Georges Cadoudal and the Chouans must
make the attempt to get rid of me. Gradually they thought
out various means. Six evil-doers were engaged to stab
me during the parade, namely, at the moment when I
should step out from the railings of the Place du Carrousel
and walk through the crowd in order to receive petitions.
But the parade did not take place on the day appointed,
and three months often passed without a single parade
being held.

Thirty of the other conspirators were disguised as
Chasseurs of the 'Guard, and were to attack my carriage

camp at lioulognc, and appoint a LiOmmission to p:
final judgment on you, Pichegru. As soon as you a
acquitted you shall be made Second Consul.”

“ All very well,” said Georges Cadoudal, but then

n6 MEMOIRS OF NAPOLEON I

between Nanterre and the bridge of Neuilly, during my
drive to Malmaison, to which place I usually went at
night. They were to attack the escort which consisted of
only fifteen men, of wliom, presumably, the half would
already have been killed by the volley of pistol-shots,
before they had had time to defend themselves, and then
to stab me in my cairiagc.

It has been proved that most of these Chouans did
not harbour any personal hatred or feeling of revenge
against me. But as they had plenty of money at their
disposal they indulged in all kinds of excesses. Almost all
had mistresses, and they postponed from day to day their,
difficult and dangerous task.

It was arranged that a prince of the House of Bourbon
should land on the coast at Bivillc as soon as the news of
my murder had been known. But as they were not certain
that a landing could be made, owing to the inconstancy
of the wind, it was settled that the Duke d’Enghien, who
w'as in Germany at the time, should travel to Paris as
soon as he learned of the event, to act as the King’s
representative ; for they considered that the presence of a
Prince of the Blood was necessary. The Duke d’Enghien,
a young and very brave man, was living ^vithin four
leagues of the French frontier, and had, as has already
been related, extensive relations wdth the enemy agents.

I considered it neccssaiy^ to secure the person of the
Prince. Consequently, at seven o’clock one evening, a
regiment of Dragoons crossed the Rhine at Neubreisach,
surrounded the Prince’s house during the night, made
him prisoner, and conveyed him to Strasburg. From
here he was taken directly to Paris, placed before a
military commission, and condemned to death in accord-
ance with the laws. The sentence was carried out and
made known all over Paris. The court-martial was not
arbitrarily chosen, but consisted, in accordance with the
law, of all the colonels in Paris. The Prince admitted
having borne arms against the French Republic, and
having sought and recently obtained employment in
England. He also admitted that he was well informed of
the events that took place from day to day, and that he
had been actively concerned in them.

If the Conte d’ Artois had been taken prisoner under

FORMING THE STATESMAN, 1799-1805 117

similar circumstances he would likewise have been
condemned and executed. The laws of France were
short and sharp against those who, svith arms in their
hands, rose against their coimtry, and besides, the Prince
was one of the chiefs of the great conspiracy which had
been woven some time previously.

Those who contested the thesis that the Due d’Engliien
was not concerned in the plot have agreed that his death
must be laid at the door of the Due d’Artois who planned
the overthrow of the Republic and the murder of its
highest oiTicial. This reproach has been made more than
once to the Due d’Artois by the Duke of Bourbon, the
father of the unfortunate Enghien.

A LAKDINO IN ENCLAND POSSIBLE !

From old times a landing in England has been regarded
as possible, and, if it had been effected, the taking of
London would have been the infallible consequence.
Once you were master of London a powerful party would
have been formed against the oligarchy. Did Hannibal
look back when he was crossing the Alps, or Casar when
he landed in Epirus or in Africa ? London lies only a
few marches’ distance from Calais, and the English Army
which was scattered for the protection of the coast, would
not have been able to unite in time to protect the capital
once the landing had been effected. Of course, this
enterprise could not have been accomplished with a
single army-corps. But with an army of 160,000 men
that could appear before London five days after the
landing, it would certainly have succeeded.

The fleets would only have been the means of putting
the 160,000 men on land in a few hours, and of seizing
possession of all the landing-places. The passage across
the Channel would have to be carried out under the
protection of one of the squadrons lying off the Island of
Martinique, the ships having hurried in full sail from
there to Boulogne. Fifty man-of-war ships, which ran
out from Toulon, Brest, Rochefort, Lorient, and Cadiz,
and assembled off the Island of Martinique, would have
arrived offBoulogne, and thelanding in England would have
been assured while the English squadrons were occupying
the seas in order to protect the East and the West Indies.

ii8 MEMOIRS OF NAPOLEON I

THE AIM THAT I HAD IN VIEW IN CREATING THE FLOTILLA

AT BOULOGNE

I wanted to assemble forty or fifty battleships in the
harbour of the Island of Martinique through combined
operations from Cadiz, Brest, and Ferrol. When united
they were to return suddenly to Boulogne. For fourteen
days I hoped to be master of the sea. I had 150,000 men
and 10,000 horses assembled on that coast, together with
3000 to 4000 flat-bottomed boats. As soon as the arrival
of my fleets was reported, I should have landed in England
and made myself master of London and the Thames.
This plan fell through. If Admiral ViUeneuve, instead of
running into Ferrol, had contented himself with uniting
under his command the Spanish fleet, and had sailed to
Brest, in order to unite his ships with those of Admiral
Gantaumc, my army would have landed, and there
would have been an end of any trouble with England.

In order to carry out my plan I had to collect 150,000
men in Boulogne. I needed, besides, an enormous amount
of war material and stores of all kinds. It seemed imposs-
ible to put evcr>Thing on board, and at the same time to
deceive the enemy as to my real intentions. If I succeeded
in deceiving him it is because I did the opposite to what
appeared to be my intention. If fifty battlesliips were
necessary to protect my army on the passage to England, I
required only transport ships in Boulogne. And this luxury
of praams (lighters), gunboats, etc., all provided with
guns, was absolutely unnecessary.

If I had succeeded in collecting together 4000 transport
vessels, the enemy would then have perceived that I was
waiting for my fleet in order to risk the crossing ; but
while I was building lighters and gunboats,^ and provid-
ing all these vessels with guns, I kept on placing elsewhere
cannon against cannon and battleship against battleship,
so that the enemy should be deceived.

The enemy believed that it was my intention to force
the passage across, and that it was to be done by the
military strength of the flotilla alone. He had no idea of
my actual plan, and it was only when all the movements
of my squadrons were wrecked that he perceived the

fO

FORMING THE STATESMAN, 1799-1805 ng

terror, and all sensible people have admitted that England
was never so near her downfall.

MY GREAT MARJTIME PLAN

Before England attacked the Spanish silver-ships and
Spain had assured me of her unlimited support, I received,
up to the end of the year 1804, no help except that from
Holland. My plan was at that time as follows : After
the reunion of the fleets Toulon, Rochefort (six battle-
ships), and Brest (twenty-three battleships), I intended to
appear before Boulogne with this united naval strength,
to join the Dutch battleships there, and so to cover the
passage across and the landing' of my troops. The
Austnans spoiled this plan.

After the death of Latouclic-Trcvillcs, one of my best
admirals, Villeneuvc was given the chief command in
Toulon, and hoisted his flag on the battleship Buuntaurc.
His squadron consisted of four battleships, each of eighty
guns, eight battleships of seventy-four guns, and six
frigates, with crews amounting in all to 7000 men. On
the 30th of March, 1805, he sailed from Toulon, and
arrived off Cartagena on the 7th of April, to wait there
for six Spanish battleships. As the latter were not yet
fully equipped, he continued his voyage and appeared
before Gibraltar in the middle of April. From here he
went in chase of Sir John Ordc who was cruising before
Cadiz.

In this district he received reinforcements of one
battleship of seventy-four guns, and a Spanish squadron
under Admiral Gravina, consisting of six battleships,
together with 2000 troops for landing purposes.

On the gth of May Villeneuvc opened the scaled orders
which I had sent him, and accordingly commissioned
Admiral Gravina to separate his squadron from the
French fleet to strengthen the garrisons of Porto Rico and
Havana, and then to sail again towards him and meet
him in a given harbour. On the 14th of May Villeneuvc
cast anchor before the Island of Martinique. Here he
learned that Admiral Missiessy had just left the West
Indies. The latter had sailed on board the flagship
Majeslueux from Rochefort for the West Indian colonics,
with six battleships, three frigates, and 3000 men.

120 MEMOIRS OF NAPOLEON I

I was just on the point of making a tour of inspection of
the Rhine fortresses wlicn I gave orders for certain expedi-
tions to be undertaken. They consisted in the following :
First, to strengthen the garrisons of Ihe Islands of
Martinique and Guadeloupe and to capture the English
islands of Dominika and Santa Lucia ; secondly, to bring
under the French dominion Surinam with the possessions
pertaining thereto, and to run into San Domingo ; and,
thirdly, to occupy St. Helena.

Shortly before leaving Milan, after my coronation as
King of Italy, in order to pay a visit to my eastern Depart-
ments I heard of the return of the squadron, and, of course,
had to find fault with those concerned for the premature
abandonment of Dominika. I continued sending out my
ships, as aliovc described, in the most varied directions,
and I owed my results to this manoeuvre ; and I was able
to congratulate myself on having kept secret the real
object of Villcncuve’s fleet It was only about Nelson
that I was very an.xious. In a letter ^vhich I wrote on the
gth of June, shortly after my departure from Milan, do
my Minister of Marine, Deeres, I said : “ It is very
difficult to find out what Nelson has been doing. It is
quite possible that the English have sent fifteen newly
fitted-out battleships to the East Indies, and at the same
time have sent Nelson to America. Besides, I am of
opinion that Nelson is still in European waters. I have
a strong instinctive feeling that he has returned to England,
in order to provision his ships and to distribute his crews
among other vessels, for the ships were in need of repair,
and his fleet may be regarded as being in a very bad
condition.” I reminded the Minister of Marine of the
importance which I attached to the fact that Villeneuve
was provisioning the fleet lying at anchor in Ferrol, and
remarked concerning the Rochefort squadron that the
English had doubtless sent a number of ships after it.
One cannot easily reckon in advance^ everything that
should be done by an admiralty which controls the
movements of 100,000 men in Boulogne, seven battleships
at the Texel, and 30,000 men, besides twenty-two battle-
ships at Brest. It would have been possible for Villeneuve
to return immediately, but he might just as well have
continued his voyage to the West Indies, or Jamaica.

FORMING THE STATESMAN, 1799-1805 J2i

Wiat a great responsibility weighed then on the shoulders
of a Ministry when it let months pass without sending
troops for the proteetion of its colonies ! In all probability
England was able at any time to fit out sixty-five battle-
ships ready to sail. As soon as Villeneuvc arrived off
Ferrol news had to he sent him, for notlung strengthens
courage and determination more than the knowledge of
your opponent’s position.

In point of fact, the English had at their disposal over
one hundred and eleven battlesliips. When you deduet
from this number three observation ships, and sixteen
prison and hospital ships, there arc ninety-tsvo left, of
which, however, as a rule, twenty were always lying in
tlie docks. The above seventy-two ships were presumably
distributed in the following manner : eight to ten in
India, two to four in Jamaica, as many in Barbados.
That makes altogether from fourteen to eighteen. So
there still remained from fifty-four to fifty-eight left,
which were employed in blockading the squadrons of
Cadiz, Ferrol, and Brest, besides pursuing the fleets of
Villeneuvc and Missiessy.

The Franco-Spanish naval forces consisted of the
follotving : twenty-two battleships in Brest, fifteen in
Cadiz, twelve in Ferrol, twenty under the command of
Villcneuve, one in Lorient, five under Missiessy, altogether
seventy-five. The fifteen battleships lying in Cadiz were
opposed to only five English ; if you take ten from seventy-
five there remains sixty-five, which could he united at
pleasure. In all probability, the English were also able,
as I have already said, to bring up sixty-five battleships at
any time.

When Villeneuvc sailed to the West Indies he was
follmved by Nelson. On the 21st he left the Island of
Martinique, captured an English vessel on the high seas
off Barbados, another in the neighbourhood of the Azores,
seized, besides, a rich prize in a ship from the Cape, and
a galleon, and was strengthened by two battleships
whose commander, Magon, handed him my orders to
sail to Ferrol, in order to unite under his command five
battleships under Rear-Admiral Gourdon, six Spanish
ships under Grandellana, and five French under Allemand
(formerly under the command of Missiessy). With the

122 mMOIRS OF NAPOLEON I

help of this fleet of about forty battleships Villeneuve
drove Admiral Comv^allis from Brest, and thus cleared
the way for the twenty-two battleships of Admiral Gan-
taume. Villeneuve should now have taken up a position
at the entrance of the Channel uith sixt}^-two battleships,
including six three-deckers, besides a large number of
gunboats, in order to protect the 2283 transport-vessels of
\sdiich my flotilla consisted. This %ras my plan : unfortun-
ately, it was •v\Tecked by . Villeneuve" For," after the
engagement -with Admiral Sir Robert Calder, he sailed to
Vigo, put his sick and wounded on shore, and then
repaired to Corunna, iea\Tng behind three battleships, to
unite under his command there six French and ten
Spanish batdeships.

I -vvas in Boulogne at the time, and perceived, from the
measures taken by the English, the positions of the different
squadrons. I ordered Gantaume to cast anchor in the
Bay of Brest, in order to ■^rait there for Villeneuve 'stith
his fleet. On the 21st of August Gantaume obeyed my
orders and anchored in the Bay of Brest.

On the loth of August, when the ^vind 'was bloving
from the east, Villeneuve put to sea, after ha\ing first
increased the strength of his fleet by the French and
Spanish squadrons under Gourdon, Gra\ina, and Gran-
dellena which lay at anchor in the Bay of Ferrol. As, on
the 13th, no hostile fleet appeared, Villeneuve sailed, first
townrds the north, but then suddenly altered his course in
a southerly direction. He cruised for four da>"s on the
high seas off Sao Vincente, and on the 21st of August
entered Cadiz on the ver)’- day that he was expected in
Brest. Lord CoUingwood -who was cruising ^\ith four
battleships off Cadiz found himself taken by surprise, and
had only just time to escape.

During these events Admiral Allemand was cruising, as
he had been ordered, ^vith fom battleships in the Bay of
Biscay. He had been instructed to expect further orders
there^ and in case these orders did not reach him, to steer
for Vigo, in order to meet Villeneuve on the 13th of
August. He carried out these orders punctually, and cast
anchor in the Bay of Vigo on the i6th, two days after
Villeneuve had sailed from there vithout lea\dng any
orders. Through this unusual proceeding k'iileneuve

FORMING THE STATESMAN, 1799-1805 123

was gambling with Allemand’s squadron. As Allemand
did not receive any orders he put to sea again to continue
his cruising, and toot the opportunity of capturing an
enemy ship of fifty guns, and a corvette. After that he
cast anchor at Rochefort on the 24th of December.

When I heard in Boulogne of the arrival of Villeneuve
at Cadiz I lost my temper and shouted angrily : “ That
is treason ! ” For Villeneuve, before leaving Ferrol had
expressed the intention of sailing for Brest, and had
ordered Allemand to wait for him in Vigo. In spite of
that he sailed past this harbour without entering it.

ULM AND AUSTERLITZ. I805

Mack’s greatest mistake was his retreat to TJIm tvith
his 80,000 men, and his refusal to surrender the totvn.
In consequence of tlie rain everytliing was in confusion,
and nobody was in command. The Archduke Ferdinand
refused to take orders from Mack. I saw beforehand
how everything would turn out, and therefore did not
give orders for Ulm to be taken by storm, but tvished to
starve out the garrison. I had the complete lists of
Mack’s army, and showed them to him later on. He
thought that the Russians were on the Inn ; 1 assured the
Austrian general that this was not the case, and therefore
I contented myself tvith blockading the town. The
fighting at Elchingcn had demoralised the Austrians. Mack
assured me that his troops were in the greatest disorder.

When I had made Mack’s 80,000 men prisoners, and
had taken possession of all the stores of the Austrian
Army, I resolved to march on Vienna, first to relieve
Italy of a burden, and to cut the Archduke’s line of
retreat, he having beaten the Prince of Essling (Massena),
and having already reached the Adige ; secondly, to
prevent his army from uniting with that of the Czar
Alexander ; and, thirdly, to bring in Kutusow’s army, to
beat it, and, if possible, to destroy it. When I reached
Vienna I heard that the Archduke Charles was in full
retreat from Italy, that the Prince of Essling was follow-
ing him, and that his army consisted of only 35,000 to
40,000 men, having been reduced by the garrisons left
behind at Venice and Palmanova, as well as by the corps
of observation in Carinthia ; finally that the Czar

124 MEMOIRS OF NAPOLEON I

Alexander was in Olmiitz. I resolved to eross the Danube
at Vienna, with the objeet of cutting off, at Hollabrun,
the army of Kutusow, who, after having been defeated at
Amstetten, had crossed the Danube at Krems. This
move would have succeeded if Murat had not let himself
be led by the nose by Prince Bagration. While the
Russian general was talking of peace, and Murat was
imparting the information of a truce to be concluded
between the two armies, the operations were held up for
twelve hours, and Bagration withdrew his army from its
desperate situation. I received information of these
things a few hours later in Vienna. The same night I
went to my army, entrusted the defence of Vienna to the
Duke of Treviso (Mortier) with 15,000 men, proclaimed
the truce, and attacked the Russians at dawn the next
day at Hollabrun.

On the 2nd of December I defeated at Austerlitz the
united Russo-Austrian Army which was commanded by
the Emperors of Russia and Austria. I had sent the
Duke of Ragusa (Marmont) with 18,000 men to the
Semmering to oppose the Archduke Charles, and the
Prince of Eggmiihl (Davout) with 30,000 to the Hungarian
frontier. The 15,000 troops of the Duke of Treviso
(Mortier), the 30,000 of the Prince of Eggmiihl, and
Prince Essling’s 35,000 men, who had already reached
Klagenfurt, thus formed an army of 100,000 men who
were opposed to the 35,000 men composing the Archduke
Charles’s army.

The move on Austerlitz to fight the Russian Army, and
to prevent its union with the army returning from Italy,
was correct according to all the rules of the art of war.
It succeeded, and was bound to succeed. The Duke of
Elchingen (Ney) was with the 6th army-corps in Tirol,
the Duke of Castiglione (Augereau) with the yth corps
remained in reserve in Swabia, Marshal Gouvion Saint-
Cyr was before Venice, and the King of Bavaria had
reserves in Munich. As for Prussia, we were not at war
with that Power. The oath taken over the tomb of
Frederick the Great was only conditional. County Haug"
witz came into my hend-quarters to make^ certain pro-
posals to me, which I would have accepted if I had been
beaten^at Austerlitz.

FORMING THE STATESMAN, 1799-1805 125

OPERATIONS OF THE ARCHDUKE CHARLES AGAINST MARSHAL
MASSENA

After the battle of Ulm the Archduke Charles, who had
gained advantages over the Prince of Essling (Massena),
and had reaehed tlie Adige, was compelled to beat a
retreat, and to hasten tvith all speed to the help of Vienna.
He left a strong garrison in Venice and Palmanova, and
an observation corps in Carinthia, and arrived on the
Hungarian frontier with 40,000 men. The Prince of
Essling followed him with 35,000 men of the French
Army of Italy. General Gouvion Saint-Cyr had hurried
up from Otranto and besieged Veniee ; the Duke of
Ragusa (Marmont) had marched from Vienna to the
Semmering with 20,000 men, to unite \rith the Prince
Essling. The Duke of Treviso (Morticr) had remained in
Vienna svith 1 5,000 men, and the Prince of Eggmiihl was
at Pressburg on the Danube with 30,000. Two of his
. divisions proceeded by forced marches towards the battle-
field of Austcrlitz, but they arrived only after the battle
had been decided, and when nothing more was to be
feared from the Archduke Charles, who, thoroughly
exhausted, sought a place of refuge in the lap of Hungary.

MY NEGOTIATIONS WITH PRUSSIA, DECEMDER 1805

Two days after the battle of Austcrlitz, Count Haug-
witz. Prime Minister of the King of Prussia, came to
Briinn in Moravia and bad two audiences with me.
Fighting was already going on between the outposts, and
I asked him to await in Vienna the result of the battle.
“ I shall beat the Russians and Austrians ; wait, therefore,
and tell me nothing, for I will not listen to anything
to-day.” Haugwitz was no novice in diplomacy, and did
not wait to be asked twice. The battle of Austcrlitz was
fought ; I returned to Vienna, and on the 15th of
December, 1805, a treaty was signed between France and
Prussia in order to relieve Prussia of any anxiety regard-
ing the treaty which King Frederick William the Third
had concluded svith Russia a few weeks before. Prussia
promised to disarm, and received in return the assurance
that France would offer no opposition to the incorpora-

126 MEMOIRS OF NAPOLEON I

tion_ of Hanover in the Prussian dominions. France
received, moreover, Wesel, Bayreuth, and Neuchatel.

I MARRY EUGENE TO A BAVARIAN PRINCESS

I had intended for a long time to have my stepson
married. But the King of Bavaria was unwilling to give
his daughter in marriage to Prince Eugene Beauharnais,
and asserted that he did not know what was meant by an
adoption, and regarded him only as Viscount de Beau-
harnais. I let him know that, in that case, I should
rnarry my stepson to an Austrian princess. That brought
him to a decision. Josephine had already felt offended in
Munich at hearing people always talking about the love
relations between the Princess Augusta and the Prince of
Baden. On my wa.y^ through Munich, the King of
Bavaria paid me a visit in my study with a veiled lady.
He raised the veil from her face : it was his daughter !
I found her charming, and was, I must admit, a trifle
confused. The King, in consequence, thought liimself
justified in saying that I had quite lost my head. I offered
the young lady a chair, and proceeded to read a lecture
to her governess : may princesses fall in love ? Why,
they are nothing but political merchandise !

The Queen of Bavaria was pretty. I liked very much
being in her company. One day at the hunt the King
had started off before me, and I had promised to follow
him, but I remained chatting with the Queen for an hour
and a half. That gave occasion for gossip, and roused the
King to anger. When the Royal Pair met again, the
King scolded the Queen. But she replied : “ Would you
have me throw the Emperor out the door ? ” ^

From that time I had to pay dearly for this pllantry ;
for the King and Queen followed me on my journey to
Italy in the winter of i8o7j and I had them always around
me. They had bad carriages which used to break down
every moment, and I was obliged eventually to take
them into my own. In Venice also they were with me.
At bottom I was not vexed, for now I had royalty in my
suite.

CHAPTER VI

IN THE BRILLIANCY OF THE EMPIRE, 1806-1811
PRUSSIA DECLARES WAR ON ME IN THE AUTUMN OF

1806

T he treaty concluded with Haug\vitz in Vienna
in December 1805 was only ratified conditionally
in Berlin. As this procedure was contrary to
the usual custom, negotiations were continually going on
during the exchange of the terms for ratification which
took up a part of the year 1806 ; however, everything
was arranged. In October Prussia declared war without
giving any reason. Not as the result of the advice of a
^nister nor of the wish of the King, but in consequence of
stirred-up passions. The fact of the matter is that towards
the end of the summer of 1806 Prussia took up arms
because it had been deceived by a false dispatch from the
Marquis Lucchesini who assured the Court of Berlin that
in the treaty that had just been signed by Count Oubril
in Paris between France and Russia both these Great
Powers had undertaken obligations which ran counter to
the intersts of Prussia. In the first shock of fear the Berlin
Court took up arms both against Russia and France. An
explanation soon took place and Prussia was left %vithout
anxiety as far as Russia was concerned, for this Power
had revoked what Oubril, the Russian charge d’affaires,
had done in Paris, and had refused to ratify the treaty, in
which, besides, no reference whatever had been made to
Prussia. After having been so quick in raising the standard
of war against Russia and France, the Prussian Court,
^vhen it saw that it had only to fight the FrOTch, and felt
sure of Russia’s help as well, believed that it ^vas certain
to win the victory. A few weeks later, however, the battle
of Jena decided the question.

X27

128

MEMOIRS OF NAPOLEON I

JENA, 14TII OCTOBER, 1806

When was inevitable I moved my head-quarters at
the beginning of October to Bamberg, and united my
■whole army on tlic Regnitz. While the King of Prussia
was advancing to the Main, he thought he could break
tlirougli my line of operations in the direction of Mayence,
and hold up my movements. For this purpose he sent
foiavard tlic army-corps under Bliicher and the one under
the Duke of Weimar in that direction. However, the
French line of communications no longer passed via
Mayence but from Kronach via Forchheim on the
Regnitz,. and from there to Strasburg. As I had nothing
more to fear from an offensive by the Prussians I marched
in three columns. The left I directed on Coburg under
the command of the Dukes of Montebello (Lannes), and
Castiglione (Augereau), which consisted of the 5th and
7th Army-corps ; the centre via Kronach and Schleiz
(I was with this corps myself), which consisted of the ist
and 3rd Army-corps, and which was under the command
of Marshal Bernadotte and the Prince ofEggmiihl (Davout),
besides the Guards and the cavalry reserve. The right
wing marched through Bayreuth via Hof, and comprised
the 4th and 6th Army-corps, being led by the Duke of
Dalmatia (Soult) and the Prince of Moscova (Ney).
The Prussian Army, which was already advancing on the
Main, halted between Weimar and Auerstadt, in order to
support its vanguard. Cut off from the Elbe and from
Berlin, all their stores were captured, which stores served
as food for the French Army.

Before the battle began the Prussians recognised their
danger. Their position had really become desperate.
And although their army was so near Magdeburg, the
heart of Prussia, and was only two days’ march from the
Elbe, it was beaten, cut off, and unable to make an
orderly retreat.

In the night between the i8th and 19th October, the
army-corps of the Prince of Moscova, of Marshal Duke 01
Montebello, those of the Dukes of Castiglione, and
Dalmatia, the Guards, the Cuirassiers of Hautpqul and
Nansouty, were all united. The army was combined in
two great masses of troops, one of 80,000 men at Jena,

BRILLIANCY OF THE EMPIRE, i8o6-i8n 129

and the other of 60,000 men at Naumburg, from which
the Saalc falls very r^idly as far as Jena, and has only
one outlet, namely, at Domburg, which was occupied by a
small force.

The Prussian Army was completely taken by surprise.
General Bluchcr and the Duke of Weimar had advanced
to Cassel, and were marching towards the Main. The
Duke of Brunswick was Commandcr-in-Chief, and as
soon as he discovered my intention, he called back the
nvo above-mentioned corps. But it would take a few
days to return. On the 13th of October the Prince of
Eggmiihl captured tlic whole of the stores of the Prussian
Army in Naumburg which is situated on the right bank
of the Saale. The greatest anxiety reigned in the head-
quarters in Weimar. The Prussian Gencral-in-Chicf
resolved to tvithdraw his army across the Saale, left to
their own resources the corps of Bluchcr and the Duke of
Weimar, and marched to Naumburg to recapture his
stores, for he thought they had fallen into the hands of
partisan freebooters.

On the 14th of October 60,000 Prussians attacked the
French 3rd Army-corps at the entrance to the defiles of
Kdsen. But already at three o^cIock I had appeared on
the heights of Jena with 80,000 men, and threw back the
armies of the Generals Ruchcl and the Prince of Hohen-
lohe, which together numbered 1 00,000 men. The
60,000 which King Frederick William commanded, were
defeated by the sole efforts of the 30,000 men of the
3rd Corps, as Marshal Bemadottc would not take the
risk of foliowng them in the narrow defile leading to
Kosen. In the night he had retreated two leagues in
order to cross the Saale by the bridge of Domburg, and
■ here, early on the 14th he was in the position to fall on
the enemy’s flank. Without doubt the Prince of Eggmiihl
was not able to wn a victory, but he was able to hold the
Pass of Kosen. With such excellent infantry as he com-
manded, 10,000 men were sufficient to hold the pass.
But in case he had lost it the Prussian Army would not
have crossed the Saale before him, and it would certainly
have been sufficient to guard the bridge. Finally, if he
had been driven out of the Kosen defile, he could have
gone over to the right bank of the Saale, and this would

130 MEMOIRS OF NAPOLEON I

not have inhuenced the result of the battle of Jena. In
any case, the loss of the Prussian Army would not have
taken place. Marshal Davout fulfilled his purpose
completely by preventing the Prussian Army from cross-
ing thc^ Saalc. If Davout had marched the three leagues
separating Dornburg from Jena the Prussian Army
would have escaped, for it could have reached the right
bank of the Saale. The unexpected move of the ist
Army-corps (Bernadotte’s) put the Prince of Eggmiihl in
the position of covering himself with glory, and of raising
the reputation of the French infantry to the highest
possible point.

THE king’s aunt IS LEFT BEHIND IN BERLIN WITHOUT MEANS

When I made my brilliant entry into Berlin, the
mother of the Prince of Orange, sister of the King, had
remained behind, ill, in the upper rooms of the Royal
Palace. Her position was pitiable, , fm* they had left her
without money, and almost everybody had gone away.
One or two days after my arrival some persons of her
household came and begged help from me, and informed
me that they had not even enough money to buy wood
for the princess. She had in fact been abandoned in a
disgraceful manner. As soon as I was informed of her
condition I sent her 100,000 francs, and went to see her
myself. I ordered everything suitable to her rank to be
sent to her, and we had several meetings. She was vety
grateful to me for my attentions, and a land of friendship
developed between us, for I liked her conversation very
much.

I PARDON THE PRINCE OF HATZFELD

Intriguing women I hate above all things ! I have
been accustomed to good, gentle, and agreeable women ;
these I love. If they have spoiled me it is not my fault, it
is the fault of Josephine. I was good to one woman who
showed herself gentle and amiable— Frau von Hatzfeld.
When I showed her the letter which her husband had
written to the King of Prussia before the entry of the
French, she said, sobbing, and with deep feeling : “Yes,
that is indeed his writing.” And when she was reading
the letter her voice affected me to the depths of my heart.

BRILLIANCY OF THE EMPIRE, 1806-1811 131

I was sorry for her. ** Madame,** I said to her, “ throw
this letter into the fire, and then I shall no longer have the
power to punish your husband.** She burned the letter,
and seemed very happy. Her husband was now quite
safe ; two hours later he would have been a lost man.

I ^VIN A SANGUINARY VICTORY AT PREUSSISCH-EYLAU,
8th FEBRUARY, 1807

After the battle of Pultusk in December, 1806, Bennigsen,
the Russian Commander-in-Chief, marched to the Lower
Vistula to attack Manhal Bernadette who was occupying
Elbing, I left Warsaw on the 25th of January, 1807,
united my army in WiHcnbcrg, and marched on the left
flank of the Russians with the object of driving them into
the Frische Haff. The country was at that time still
covered with snow and ice. Bennigsen’s army soon
found itself in a difficult situation, for the French Army
was already standing in its rear, when the Cossacks took
prisoner an officer 01 Berthicr’s General Staff who was on
his tvay to Marshal Bernadotte. From the letters found
they were able to recognise my plan. In all haste Bennig-
sen fell back on AUcnstcin and evacuated the town in the
night in order to avoid a battle. The French Army
vigorously followed up the Russians. Having arrived in
Deppen, the Prussian general, Yorck, crossed the Passarge
and turned towards Wormdit. I now ordered the Prince
of Moscova (Ney) to pursue the Prussians with his 6th
Corps. He did not succeed, however, in noticeably
weakening Yorck, as he only pursued the enemy with an
equally strong force, and if one had not followed General
Yorck, he might have turned on the left flank and the
rear of the French Army, which arrived in the evening of
the 7th of February before Eylau, after having engaged in
several fights. General Bennigsen was occupying the
town with strong forces. The Duke of Dalmatia (Soult)
attacked it with the 4th Corps, and captured it, after a
stubborn fight which only ended at eleven o’clock at
night.

The Prince of Eggmuhl marched three leagues with his
3rd Corps on to the right wing, in order to get round the
left wing of the enemy’s position. I fix^ my head-
quarters in Eylau. The 4th Army Corps bivouacked

132 MEMOIRS OF NAPOLEON I

before, to the left, and to the right of the town, the Guards
in the second line, the yth Corps and the cavalry reserve
in the third line. At dawn on the 8th the Russians began
the attack. They tried to retake Eylau but were beaten
back. It would really have been difficult for them to take
a town^ occupied by the Army Corps of the Dukes of
Dalmatia and Castiglione (Augereau), the Guards, and
the cavalry reserve, which the day before was defended
only by the 4th Corps. If the battle turned out to be a
sanguinary one for us, it was far worse for the enemy.
Our losses on this day amounted to 18,000 men.

Though we let the Prince of Moscova remain several
leagues from our left wing, and the Prince of Eggmiihl
two leagues from our right wing, we had still sufficient
forces opposed to the Russian general.

QUEEN LOUISA TRIES IN VAIN TO MAKE ME ALTER MY DECISION

IN TILSIT

If Queen Louisa had come to Tilsit at the beginning of
the negotiations she would have had much infl^uence on
the result. Fortunately she arrived only when the negotia-
tions were already far advanced, so that I was able to con-
clude the treaty in twenty-four hours. It is supposed that
King Frederick William the Third prevented her from
coming earlier from a not-unjustified feeling of jealousy of a. ^
certain high personage.

As soon as she arrived in Tilsit I called to pay . her a
visit. The Queen of Prussia was very beautiful, yet she
was not in her early youth. The Queen received me like
Mademoiselle Duchesnois in Ximena, asking for justice.

It was a real tragedy. There was no means of escape
from her ; so I offered her a chair and forced her to sit
down. In spite of all she continued in a very ceremonious
tone. “ Prussia,” said she, “ was blind as to her own
strength. The country had tried to fight a hero, to
oppose France’s destiny, and underrated the value of a
happy friendship with that Power. Prussia has been
severely punished for it 1 The fame of Frederick the
Great and the glorious memories have swollen the hearts
of the Prussians too much. They have brought about the
ruin of the country.” She asked, begged, implored.
Magdeburg was the special object of her prayers and

BRILLIANCY OF THE EMPIRE, i8o6-i8ii 133

wshcs. I wthstood her requests as well as I could.
Fortunately her consort came into the room. The Queen
cast a meaning glance at him, regretted lliat her husband
had chosen sucli an unsuitable time for his entry, and
became vexed at it. In fact the King took part in the con-
versation and spoiled the whole affair ; so I was released.

I had invited the Queen to dinner. She used all her
^vit, of which she had a great deal, on me. Her manner
was very pleasing, and her coquetry was not witliout
charm. Nevertheless, I was determined to hold fast.
Over and over again I had to take great care not to make
half promises, or to give expression to a dubious word, all
the more as I was being sharply watched, and especially
so by the Czar Alexander.

Shortly before we sat dotvn to dinner, I stepped up to
a small table, took from a vase a very beautiful rose, and
offered it to the Queen. At first her hand seemed to
move as though to wave it aside, then she took it and
said; Yes, but at least, with Magdeburg . . Where-
upon I replied : “ But ... I should like to observe to
Vour Majesty, that it is I who am giving it, and it is You
who arc accepting it.” The dinner and the whole of the
remaining time was passed in this way.

The Queen was sitting between the two Emperors who
were very gallant towards her. She was placed so that
the Emperor Alexander could understand her, for with
the other ear he could scarcely hear anything. When the
evening came, and the Queen had retired, I resolved,
although I had shown the utmost amiability all the
time, while feeling myself often driven to extremity, to
bring the matter to an end. I called Monsieur Talley-
rand and Prince Kurakin, became quite violent in manner,
and remarked to them that, after all, a lady and gallantry
could in no wise alter a policy wliich concerned the
destiny of a great country. I demanded that they should
settle the business at once and sign the treaty. It happened
as I had wished. In this way the conversations with the
Queen had hastened the condition of the treaty by eight
to fourteen days. '

The next day the Queen began to renew her attacks.
She was very angry when she heard of the conclusion of
the treaty. She wept a great deal, and did not want to

134 MEMOIRS OF NAPOLEON I

sec me again, or appear at the second dinner. Alexander
had to persuade her. She was much vexed and insisted
that I had broken my word. But Alexander had been
there all the time. He was indeed a dangerous witness,
and ready to speak in my favour. “ Napoleon id not
promise you anything,” he said to the Queen. “ If you
can prove the contrary to me I pledge my word to induce
him to do it, and I am convinced that he will keep his
promise.” — “ Still, he gave me hopes,” said she — “ No,” said
Alexander, “ and you have nothing to reproach him with.”

At last she came. As I had no longer any need to
defend myself I was extremely nice to her. For a few
moments she assumed an offended air. When the repast
was over and she was about to withdraw, I accompanied her
to her carriage. As I remained standing on the steps, she
squeezed my hand, and said to me in a voice full of
emotion : “ As I have the happiness of being so closely
acquainted with the man of the century and of history is
it possible for him to give me the liberty and satisfaction
of assuring him that he has bound me to him for life ? ”
“ Madame,” I replied seriously, “ I am to be pitied. My
unlucky star is .to be blamed.” And with these words I
took leave of her.

Having reached her carriage she threw herself, sobbing,
into it, sent for Duroc whom she esteemed highly, and
repeated her complaints. Pointing to the building that
she had just left, she said to him : “ In this house I have
been terribly deceived.”

The Queen of Prussia has beyond doubt many good
qualities, possesses much knowledge, and great finesse.
For fifteen years she was really the Regent. In spite of my
adroitness and all my efforts, she dominated ^ the con-
versation, and returned continually to her main theme,
but perhaps too frequently. It was done, moreover, with
the greatest dexterity, so that it was impossible to take
offence. To be sure it must be admitted that the subject
was important to her, and the time valuable and short.

I MEET MY BROTHER LUGIEN IN MANTUA ON DEG. IgTH, 1807

During my Italian journey, which I made towards the
end of the year 1807 , 1 had seen Lucien in Mantua on the
13th December, and talked with him for several hours.

BRILLIANCY OL THE EMPIRE, i8oG-i8ii 135

His views and his manner of speaking were so different
from mine that it svas only with difficnUy that I could
grasp sv’hat he "wanted. As it seems, he wished to send his
eldest daughter to Paris to her grandmother
Lucien seemed to me to be struggling against certain
feelings hut did not possess enough strength of character
to make a decision.

I was ready to prepare the way for hts rights as a
French prince, and to acknowledge all his daughters as
my nieces, if he were prepared to declare as null and void
his union tvith Madame Joubertlion whether by a divorce
or by any other means.

In these circumstances all his children would be taken
care of. If Madame Jouhcrlhon had been so fortunate as
to give birth to a daughter, I should not have objected to
adopting her, or, if it had been a boy, to recognise him as
Lucicn’s son, not, to be sure, of legitimate marriage.
I tvould have been wilh'ng to bring him up so as to make
him capable of entering into possession of the estates that
1 ivished to grant his father, apart from any title that
might have been conferred on him by the general policy
of the State, while he could make no claim on his father’s
successors by legitimate marriage, or to the throne of the
French Empire. In any case I left no stone unturned to
persuade Lucien to use his abilities for me and the country,
but all my efforts were in vain.

THE DIVIDING UP OF TtlE WORLD AMONG THE POWTILS IN-
ERFURT

In Erfurt I had come to an understanding ii-ith the
Czar Alexander over the division of the East. France
was to receive Egypt and Syria, and Poland was to rise
agam from her ashes. The treaty was outlined, yet I
could not make up my mind to sign it. It would liavc
meant a complete revolution of the world. Perhaps a
war "with the Emperor of Austria would have resulted
from It on account of the Polish provinces. And then,
how couid I ever hope for peace with England ? For
after the dismemberment of Turkey, if I definitely incor-
porated the above-mentioned territories in the French
Empire, I would have had no possibility left of negotiat-
ing a general peace. If I had placed on my head the

136 MEMOIRS OF NAPOLEON I

Crown of the West on the basis of the Treaty of Erfurt,
there would no longer have been any possibility of peace
with England. It would have become a fight to the death.
And who would have guaranteed to me that Czar Alex-
ander, after possessing himself of Constantinople, would
not return to the English alliance, in order to take back
Poland from me, and reduce the French dominions, now
that the Russian Power had no rivals of any kind, and
Russian actions could not be controlled ?

Alexander had always borne a grudge against me for
postponing the signing of the treaty. He would not
believe me when I told him that the interests of France
required that I should not sign before I had settled the
aflfairs of Spain. He thought that I was seeking an
excuse. He was wrong : I would have signed if Spain
had been subdued and I had had that country quite in
my power ; for I felt myself strong enough at that time
not be obliged to fear Russian loyalty.

FOUCHE TRIES TO HASTEN MY DIVORCE FROM

JOSEPHINE

The Minister of the Interior, Fouche, was worrying
himself over the frequency and the duration of the con-
versations which I was holding with Talleyrand. He
imagined that I had the intention of marrying a sister of
the Czar Alexander, and took into his head to solve the
difficult problem in which I seemed to hesitate, as I was
so long considering it, convinced as he was . that this
service would help to increase his influence with me at the
expense of an ambitious rival.

He addressed himself directly to the Empress Josephine
and spoke of the interests of France, that required a
successor to the Empire. He represented to the Empress
how glorious it would be, how it would raise her above all
women, if she would make this heavy, sacrifice. Fouche
succeeded in gaining full power over the Empress, for the
latter was caught in the quite natural belief that a Minister
would not dare to make overtures of this kind without
having been authorised to do so. He ventured^ to bring
her the outline of a letter which she was to write to the
President of the Senate, to offer the country her renuncia-
tion of the title of Empress and Consort. The Empress

BRILLIANCY OF THE EMPIRE, i8o6-i8u 137

offered only a feeble resistance, but sbe postponed the
signing of the letter till the follorving morning.

Madame Remusat, one of the ladies of the Palace who,
naturally, did not relish the idea of descending from her
position as confidante of the Empress to that of a maid of
honour to a dctlironed princess, made a bold decision.
She waited for the moment when I left my private study
to go to my bedroom. It was one o’clock in the morning.
She announced herself just as I was going to bed. Her
age prevented any suspicion of a dubious character in
this step. My curiosity was aroused, and I received her.
The matter was very strange, for I learned, in fact, that it
was a question of putting away my wife. I at once went
to Josephine and gave her the assurance that if considera-
tions of State should ever determine me to dissolve our
union, she svould receive the first overtures from me.

I journeyed to Spain without having seen FouchiS, but
I let him know that he was not to trouble himself any
more about any matters outside his police administration,
and to suppress the rumours of divorce which had been
spread by his authority.

THE GREATEST MISTAKE OF MY CAREER ; THE INTERFERENCE
IN SFANISH AFFAIRS

The unfortunate war in Spain ruined me. All my
defeats came from this source. The Spanish war des-
troyed my reputation in Europe, increased my embarrass-
ments, and provided the bmt training-ground for the
English soldiers. I myself trained the English Army in
the Peninsula.

Circumstances have proved that I erred in the choice of
means, for the mistake lay rather in the means employed
than in the principles.

Doubtless, in the crisis in which France found herself at
that time, that is to say, during the fight for new ideas
and the struggle of the century against the rest of Europe,
we could not leave Spain out, and abandon her to our
enemies ; we had to bind her to our policy either of her
own free rvill or by force. France’s destiny demanded it.
Moreover, the code of laws for the salvation of nations is
not always the same as that for the individual.

Besides, apart from the necessity of policy, 1 had an

138 MEMOIRS OF NAPOLEON I

additional good reason for the step taken. When Spain
thought I was in danger, and knew that I was engaged in
fighting the Prussians at Jena, she was near declaring war
on me. Such behaviour must not remain unpunished.
I, in my turn, was able to declare war on Spain, and the
result could not be in doubt. This apparent easiness led
me astray.

The Spanish people despised their Government and
demanded a return to the old stately and pompous
ceremonial. As Providence had raised me so high I
thought that I was called to carry out this renewal of the
old style. I considered myself worthy of carrying out
such a great event in the midst of peace. I wanted to
avoid bloodshed. I did not wish a single drop to smear
Castilian independence ; therefore I freed the Spaniards
from their horrible form of government and gave them a
liberal Constitution. I considered it necessary, and
perhaps, also, easier than it was, to change their dynasty,
and put one of my brothers on their throne. But he was
the only foreigner among them. I respected the inviol-
ability of their territory, their independence, their customs,
and their laws.

The new ruler entered the capital, and had no other
Ministers, counsellors, or courtiers, than those of the old
Court. My troops were about to withdraw. In doing
this I conferred the greatest benefit that has ever been
given to a nation ; so I said to myself, and so I still say
to-day. The Spaniards themselves thought so, so I had
been assured, and only complained as a matter of form.

I was awaiting their thanks ; but it turned out otherwise.
They were horrified at my proposal, and rose at the
sight of my troops. Everyone rushed to arms. The
Spaniards in a mass behaved like a man of honour. I
have nothing to say against that, especially as they won
the victory. They have, however, been horribly punished
for it, and will perhaps rue their triumph. They really
deserved a better fate.

My most dignified and safest plan for Spain would have
been a kind of mediation, as in the case of Switzerland.

I ought to have given the Spanish nation a liberal con-
stitution and commissioned Ferdinand to put it into
practice. If he had carried out the plan conscientiously,

BRILLIANCY OF THE EMPIRE, 1806-1811 139

Spain would have prospered, and could have made
herself closely acquainted with our new habits _ and
customs. The mam object would have been attained,
and France would have had a trusty ally and a growth of
power which would have commanded real respect. If
Ferdinand, on the other hand, had not fulfilled his new
obligations, the Spaniards would not have failed to send
him back. They would tlicn have come to ask me to give
them a new master.

However that may be, this Spanisli svar was a real
plague, the original cause of France’s misfortune. After
my negotiations in Erfurt with Alexander, England had
to be brought to reason either by force of arms or by
friendly discussions. She saw herself alone and unheeded
on the Continent. The English bombardment of Copen-
hagen had excited public opinion against her cvcrytvhcrc,
whilst I, on the contrary, was at that moment at the
height of my fame, when this unfortunate war with Spain
suddenly turned public opinion against me and rehabili-
tated England. From this moment she teas able to
continue the war. The separated territories of South
America were opened to England. She trained an army
in the Peninsula, she remained the victor. And Spain
became a clearing-house for all the intrigues of the
Continent. All this brought about my downfall.

At that time I was heaped with reproaches which I did
not deserve. History svill wash me clean. I was accused
of falseness, disloyalty, and tunning. Nothing of that Is
true. Whatever may be said about it, I have never
broken my word, cither to Spain or any other Power.
One day people will be convinced that in the Spanish
affairs I remamed apart from all domestic Court intrigues,
that I never broke my word either to Cliarlcs IV or
Ferdinand VII. 1 kept all my engagements both to the
father and the son, and I made use of no kind of lying
pretexts to induce them to come to Bayonne. They both
came rather of their own free will. When I saw them at
my feet and was able to judge myself of their complete
incapacity, an unspeakable compassion fdled me lor the
fine of a great people. I seized the only opportunity
offered me by Fortune to cause Spain to rise again, to
separate her from England, and to bind her closely to our

140 MEMOIRS OF NAPOLEON I

policy. According to my comprehension, that is to say,
I was laying the foundation-stone of the tranquillity and
peace of Europe. But it was far fi*om my intention to use
base and feeble means, as was said in the reports pub-
lished broadcast. If I failed it was for the opposite
reason. Bayonne was not an ambuscade but a huge and
brilliant coup d^^faf. A little hypocrisy would have saved
me, or, better, if I had handed over the Peace Prince to
the fury of the people. The mere thought seemed horrible
to me. It would have seemed to me that I was buying
peace with a blood offering. And then, of course, Murat
spoiled a great deal of my work.

However that may be, I scorned sordid and low means,
for I considered myself too powerful for that. I even
ventured on the bold stroke from too great a height.
I wished to act like Providence which heals tlie sufferings
of mortal men in her own way, many times by violent
means, regardless of any condemnation whatever.

The Court and the Ruling Family were torn asunder
by two parties. The one was the party of the King who
let himself be led blindly by liis favourite, the Peace
Prince, Godoy. The latter had made himself the real
king. The other party was that of the heir apparent,
ruled over by his former tutor, Escoiquiz, who hoped to
rule himself. Both sides, in hke manner, sought my
protection. Doubtless I was determined to take all the
advantage possible from the situation.

The favourite, who -wished both to hold his post and to
escape from the son’s revenge, in case the father died,
offered in the name of Charles IV to join me in the
conquest of Portugal, reserving to Iiimself, however, a
place of refuge in the lordship of Algaiwes.

On the other hand, the Prince of the Asturias
(Ferdinand) wrote to me privately, and \vithout the
knowledge of his father, to request at my hand a Consort
and my protection.

I closed with tlie first, and left the second wthout an
answer.

My troops were already in the Peninsula when the son
took advantage of a rising to force his father to abdicate
and then reign in his stead.

I have been foolishly reproached for liawng taken part

BRILLIANCY OF THE EMPIRE, 1806-1811 141

in all these intrigues, and that the last-mentioned incident
spoiled all the plans arranged with the father, in con-
sequence of which my troops were already in the heart of
Spain.

From that time the two parties realised that I alone
could and must be tlie arbiter. So the father addressed
himself to me, in order to be revenged, and the son did
the same in order to be recognised. Both of them tried
zealously to defend their point of view to me, having been
persuaded to do so by their counsellors. The latter
ruled them completely and saw no other possibility of
saving their heads but by throwing themselves into my arms.

The Peace Prince, who had narrowly escaped being
murdered, easily persuaded the King and Queen to
undertake this journey, espcci.ally as they sverc in danger
themselves of being killed by the mob.

Canon Escoiquiz, who was the real instigator of all the
evil in Spain, was vciy active in persuading the young
King to undertake this journey, for he saw that Charles IV
was vigorously protesting against his abdication. He was
convinced that his pupil would have to mount the scaffold,
if he failed. This Canon, who, besides, was very confident
of his methods, did not doubt that he could influence me,
and that I would recognise Ferdinand. Speaking for
himself," he proposed to me tliat he would rule quite in
accordance with my wishes, just as the Peace Prince
would do in Charles’s name. For the rest I must admit
that if I had listened to many of his reasons, and followed
some of his ideas, I should have served my purpose much
better. When I had them all assembled in Bayonne, my
policy had more weight than I had ever ventured to
expect. I had here the Gordian Knot before me, and I
cut it. I proposed to Charles IV and the Queen to
relinquish the Crown, hand it over to me, and they
should live quietly in France. They agreed — I may
almost say they gladly agreed — for they were so prejudiced
against their son, that they and their favourite sought
henceforth nothing but rest and safety. The Prince of the
Asturias did not oppose my wishes very strongly ; in any
case no threats or force were used against him, and if it
was only from fear that he abdicated, which I am willing
to believe, that was his business.

142 MEMOIRS OF NAPOLEON I

That h, in a few words, the whole story of the Spanish
affair.

I LOSE THE BATTLE OF ESSLINGEN ON MAY 2 1 ST AND 2 2 ND,
BUT WIN AT WAGRAM ON THE 5TH AND 6tH OF JULY, 1809

I conducted a fine operation at Landshut in the year
i8og. Berthier had lost his head when I arrived. Pire
reported that Davout was surrounded and lost. I ought
to have followed the Austrians into Bohemia, but they
would then have fallen back on Prague, and this war
would have had no object ; for it was the Austrians who
had declared war on me. At first I had the intention
of separating the three Crowns, but, on the other hand,
it was well to have in existence a strong Power as an
opponent of Russia. If it had not been for Esslingen
f Aspern) I should have destroyed the Austrian Monarchy,
but Esslingen cost me too much, and I gave up that plan.

Did we lose the Battle of EssHngen because we attacked
the'enemy in close columns, or did we lose it because of a
stratagem of the Archduke Charles, who broke down our
bridges, and attacked us in this dreadful position with
100,000 men, while we had only 45,000 ?

After the Battle of Eggmiihl the French Army reached
Vienna. The Archduke Maximilian had taken over the
chief command in the capital. It had been fortified and
placed in a state of defence. During the night Artillery-
General La Riboisiere had drawn up thirty howitzers
behind a house in the suburbs and bombarded the town,
whereupon the gates were opened.

In the meantime the Archduke was approaching the
Danube on the left bank of the river. I resolved to
anticipate him and cross over to that bank. The position
on the right bank w^as not favourable as long as we
possessed no bridge-head on the left bank, for in that case
the enemy was always master of his own movements.
This was so important that I resolved to go back as far as
the Enz, in case it should be impossible to establish a
bridge-head on the left bank. This operation was very
difficult, for the Danube was 1000 yards wide, fifteen,
twenty, and even thirty feet deep, with a very strong
current. To cross a great river in the presence of a
powerful army seemed impossible, yet we could not move

BRILLIANCY OF THE EMPIRE, i8o6-i8n 143

very far from our position, for fear that the enemy, who
had two bridge-trains at his disposal, might cross the
Danube himself and turn towards Vienna.

I intended to undertake the crossing two Icagucs abovc
Vienna, for in the year 1805 I had noticed a large island,
which is separated from the right bank by the main
stream of the Danube, and from tlic left bank by an arm
only a hundred yards svide. If we took possession of this
island we could establish ourselves on it, and then sve
should no longer have a river of 1000 yards to cross, but
only an arm of a river of a hundred yards in width. It
meant forcing the Danube as in a regular siege.

On the 1 6th of May the Duke of Montebello (Lannes)
landed 500 men on this island ; the Archduke Charles’s
army was still a day’s march distant. Since the year 1805,
however, a dam had been built between the island and
the left bank, so that one could no longer speak of it as an
island. At tlic head of 6000 men General Bubna threw
himself on the 500 men and beat them. Some were taken
prisoner, some managed to retreat under the protection
of fifty guns and howitzers.

As this operation had failed I went ^vo leagues below
Vienna, that is to say, about five or six leagues distant
from the first place, where the Danube forms a beautiful
island of about 1600 yards in length, called Lobau,
which is separated from the right bank by an arm of tlic
Danube 1000 yards wide, and from the left bank by an
arm of only 120 yards. I resolved to establish myself .on
this island, and now possessed a barrier against the
Archduke. In case the Archduke turned on Krems, or
any other point, in order to cross the Danube and cut my
line of communications, I could break forth from the
Island of Lobau and catch him in the act.

Lieutenant-General Bertrand built a bridge of ships
and pontoons over the river, and on the 19th of May the
vanguard crossed over. The bridge was completed on
the 20th and the army was prepanng to pass over. At
noon the Danube rose three feet, the anchors of the ships
gave way, and the bridge broke. Meantime we were
already masters of the island, and the advanced guard
had nothing to fear. In a few hours the bridge was
repaired, and the army began to march across. Towards

144 MEMOIRS OF NAPOLEON I

six o clock a bridge was thrown over the narrow arm.
General Lasalles went over to the left bank with 3000
horses, advanced to Esslingen, and spread his troopers
out in ail directions. In doing so he came into collision
with an Austrian cavalry division with which he had
some skirmishing. He established himself between
Esslingen and Grossaspern. I myself bivouacked at the
head of the small bridge, and on the morning of the 21st
I rode over to Esslingen and Grossaspern, where I ordered
the^ Duke of Montebello and Massena to take up their
positions. A battalion was posted in Enzersdorf, whose
walls were provided with loopholes. The Cuirassiers
from Spain and Nansouty also crossed the river. At noon
the Danube had risen another four feet, and the large
bridge was destroyed, so that the remainder of the cavalry
and the artillery park could not get over.

During the day General Bertrand restored the bridges
twice. At four o’clock in the afternoon General Lasalle
reported that the Archduke’s army was on the march.
The Prince of Neuchatel (Berthier) climbed up the
church tower, and had a sketch made of the movements
of the Austrian columns. The Austrians intended attack-
ing Grossaspern with their right wing, Essling with the
centre, and Enzersdorf with the left, thus forming a
half-circle round Esslingen. I gave orders to retreat to
the Island of Lobau, and wanted to leave only 10,000 men
in the wood at the end of the little bridge. But at that
moment General Bertrand sent me word that the Danube
was falling, that he had repaired the bridge again, and
that the artillery batteries were being brought over. It
was already late. Yet I resolved to remain in the position ;
for, if the enemy should succeed in taking the village of
Esslingen, it would be very dijfhcult to recapture it, and
it would have cost much blood. At five o’clock the first
shots fell, and the artillery fire soon became general.
The Cuirassiers made several fine and brilliant charges,
and the enemy was thrown back in all his attacks on
Grossaspern and Esslingen. 25,000 men, who were
attacked by 100,000, thus held fast the battlefield for

three hours. ,

The French Army was stronger than that of the Arch-
duke by 20,000 men, and the victory could not be in

BRILLIANCY OF THE EMPIRE, i8o6-i8n 145

doubt. But towards midnight the Danube rose soj&ight-
fully tliat the bridges were again broken ; Iioweve^'»lhcy'
were again restored by General Bertrand. At daybreak
the Guards, and the Duke of Reggio (Oudinot) raced
across at a flying pace. Filled with the Iiighcst hopes,

I dismounted, intending to settle the fate of the House of
Austria. ’

When I had arrived in Esslingen I ordered the Duke of
Montebello to break through the centre of the Austrian
Army and march out of Esslingen with the Young Guard,
in order to throw himself at the critical moment on the
left flank of the enemy. This flank was supported on
Enzersdorf, a small town on the arm of the Danube
which forms the Island of Lobau. The Duke of Monte-
bello manoeuvred his divisions with the well-known
dexterity and coolness which he had acquired in number-
less fights.

The enemy recognised the importance of not letting
his very extended battle-line be broken through. It was
more than three leagues in Icngtii. All our cflbrts were
in vain. The Young Guard was already advancing on
the flank of the enemy’s left wing, when orders had to be
given it to stop, as news came that the pontoons had been
swept away by the force of the current, and that there was
no hope whatever of restoring the bridges before several
days had passed. Half of the Cuirassiers, and the Corps
of the Prince of Eggmiihl (Davout), were still on the
right bank. An especially decisive result was no longer
possible, but the plan of operations had been so svisely
and thoroughly thought out that no danger threatened
the army, for at the worst we could at any time resume
our position on the Island of Lobau, where we were
unassailable. Never was an armed camp stronger, for it
was protected by a moat of 120 yards in width on the one
side, and by a very rapidly flowing arm of the Danube on
the other. I therefore ordered the Prince of Essling and
the Duke of Montebello to stop and quiedy take up their
positions, the first in the village of Grossaspern, which is
a league long, and the other bettvecn Grossaspern and
Esslingen. On the last-named village he supported his
right wing. The movement was carried out as though it
were a parade on the Champ de Mars. The enemy,

K

146 MEMOIRS OF NAPOLEON I

discouraged and in retreat, paused astonished, but he
soon learned that our bridges were swept away, and his
centre resumed its former position. It was ten o’clock in
the morning. From this time till four o’clock, when the
fi^g ceased, that is to say, for six hours, 100,000 men
with 400 guns attacked in vain and without result 50,000
French, who had only 100 guns in position, and were
compelled to be sparing with their ammunition, as they
were short of powder and ball.

The issue of the battle lay in the taking of the village of
Esslingen. The Archduke did everything to take it.
Five times he attacked it with fresh troops, and five times
it was retaken. At three o’clock in the afternoon I ordered
my adjutant. General Rapp, and the valiant Count
Lobau (Mouton) to put themselves at the head of the
Young Guard, to attack in three colunms, and to rush at
the double on the enemy’s reserves, when the latter were
beaten into a wild flight, and the victory was decided.
The Archduke had no more fresh troops at his disposal,
and retreated to his former position. Firing ceased
exactly at four o’clock, for at this season one cannot fight
till ten o’clock at night.

The Old Guard, with whom I was, remained stationary
on the battlefield a musket-shot distant from Esslingen,
with its right wing resting on the Danube and its left close
to Grossaspern. In the afternoon General Dorsenne, the
colonel of the Grenadiers of the Old Guard, asked for
leave to make an attack, in order to decide the day and
determine the Austrians to retreat. “No,” I answered,

“ It is well that it ends so ! Without a bridge, and with-
out guns we have certainly done better than I hoped.

Let us keep quiet.” . j •

I now rode on to the Island of Lobau, and inspected it
all over, for I was afraid that the Austrians would construct
a bridge lower down and throw over a few battalions.
Then I rode to the Danube bridge. Unfortunately
everything had ^sapp eared, and not a battalion was to
be found near the place. In three days the water-level of
the Danube had risen twenty-eight feet, and the low-
lying parts of the island were under water. Then I rode
back to the little bridge leading to the northern bank, and
ordered the army to march back the following morning at

BRILLIANCY OF THE EMPIRE, 1806-1811 147

da^vn over the little bridge, and to camp on the Island of
Lobau. Marshal Massena’s corps did not cross over to
the island till near midday, but he was not molested by
the beaten Austrian Army.

That was the Battle of Esslingen. As long as we were
in possession of the Island of Lobau we had everything
that we needed to secure the possession of Vienna, and
let me repeat — we could not have held the city if we had
lost the island. IVhilc in possession of this entrenched
camp we were in a position at any time to cross over to
the left bank of the Danube.

Since the day of Essling I tvas afraid all the time that
the Archduke Charles would turn on Linz. That would
have been very unpleasant, for my bridges were only half
finished. I had a new one built, namely, on the spot
where I had already constructed a bridge after Esslingen.
The Austrians thought that the mouse would come out
of the same hole that it had gone into, and threw up
entrenchments after entrenchments.

\\^cn I crossed the bridge I wished to make a great
sham manoeuvre, in order to deceive the Austrians and
prevent them from falling in to battle order, and then to
attack them during the night. The Austrians arc good
when they arc standing in line, but they arc neither good
nor safe in manoeuvring when they feel themselves attacked
on the march. In the Battle of Wagram Davout made a
uide detour, Bernadotte failed tvith the Saxons, while the
Austrians took their positions. Their line was longer than
mine. I had left a space between my left iving and the
Danube, but had numerous troops in reserve, and tried to
turn their left sving. They, however, turned my left wing
by marching through the intermediate space. But my
reserves altered the front, and the enemy’s right wing
saw itself faced with the threat of being driven into the
river. Schwarzenberg told me later that it was this move,
rather than the effect of the Guard’s artillery, which
decided the Austrians to retreat. In fact they opposed to
my artillery a more numerous one, and one could sec
many dead Frenchmen and few Austrians.

148

MEMOIRS OF NAPOLEON I

I OUGHT TO HAVE DESTROYED AUSTRIA IN 1809

After Wagram I made a great mistake in not bringing
Austria more completely to her knees. She still remained
too strong for our safety, and was bringing us down to
destruction. On the day after the battle I ought to have
made known through a proclamation that I would only
treat with Austria on condition of the provisional separa-
tion of the three States : Austria, Hungary, and Bohemia.
And — can one believe it? — an Austrian Archduke has
often given me to understand that I might do well to
hand over one of these States to him, or place him on the
throne of Austria itself, giving as a reason that this Power
would then come to a better understanding with me.
He even offered me his son as a kind of hostage, and
asked me to appoint him as my adjutant.

IN PRAISE OF MEDICINE

What a fine thing medicine is to be sure ! In Vienna
I had a herpetic eruption in the neck which annoyed me
very much. I sent for Doctor Franck. He assured me
that it was very dangerous to remove the eruption. The
Elector of Trier had gone insane as the result of this
operation. I was also expecting Doctor Corvisart. When
he came from Paris he said : “ What ! Has Your

Majesty fetched me for such a trifle as that? A little
sulphur will make it disappear.” I repeated to him the
words of Doctor Franck. “ Bah ! The Elector of Trier
was a worn-out old man. There is a great difference.
Your constitution defends itself against the trouble.” In
point of fact I Was completely cured in a few days.

WHY I DETERMINED TO DIVORCE JOSEPHINE

The policy of my Monarchy, the interests and needs of
my people, which have constantly directed my actions,
required that I should leave the throne on which Provi-
dence had placed me to legitimate children. Now, for
several years I had lost the hope of having children by
my beloved wife, the Empress Josephine.^ For this reason
I resolved to sacrifice the tenderest emotions of my heart,
and to regard only the well-being of the State, and so 1
determined on the dissolution of our marriage.

, BRILLIANCY OF THE EMPIRE, i8oS-i8n 149

At the age of forty I could surely hope to live long
enough to bring up ehildrcn to ray liking in ease Providence
should grant me some. God knows how difficult such a
resolution was to me ; but there is no sacrifice that I
would not make for the welfare and salvation of France.

I SIARRY MAWA LOmSA — HER OHARACTTER

When, on tlic cyth of March, t8io, I drove to meet
Maria Louisa I stopped my carriage in Compiegne, for I
did not want her to know who 1 was. But the Queen of
Naples, who was sitting beside her, called out : “ There
is the Emperor ! ” I got out of the carriage quickly and
kissed Maria Louisa. The poor child had learned off by
heart a long speech, which she was to repeat to me kneel-
ing. She had read it through over and over again. I
had asked Mettcrnich and the Bishop of Nantes whether
I could spend the night under the same roof as Maria
Louisa. They removed all my doubts, and assured me
that she was now Empress and not Archduchess.* I was
only separated from her bedroom by the library. I
asked her what they had told her when she left Vienna.
She answered me very naively that her father and Frau
von Lazansky had directed her as follows ; “As soon as
you are alone tvith the Emperor you must do absolutely
everything that he tells you. You must agree to every-
thing that he asks of you.” She was a delightful child !

Monsieur Segur wanted me to keep away for form’s
sake, but as I was surely already married, everything was
all right, so I told him to go to the Devil.

I made a great mistake in giving the Empress Maria
Louisa, as her maid of honour, the Duchess of Montebello
(svife of Marshal Lannes) after the death of her husband.
I did it for the sake of tlie Army, and was not obliged to
do it. Maria Louisa liked the old Nobility better than
the new. Madame Beauveau svould have suited her
better. Madame de Montebello disgraced herself by not
remaining svith Maria Louisa. I svanted to give her
Narbonne as first gentleman-usher, for he svas longing for
the post, and would have suited this position splendidly.
He would have repeated everything to me ; but Maria

* The preliminary marriage ceremony had already taken place in
Vienna.

ISO MEMOIRS OF NAPOLEON I

Louisa would not agree to it. She did not like Madame
de Montebello. She never told untruths, was very
reserved, above all amiable, even towards those she
detested.

They had instructed her in Vienna to show a friendly
face even to those Ministers that she did not like. When
she wanted money she asked me for it, and was delighted
when I gave her 10,000 francs. That pleased me very
much, for she was very reserved. One could entrust any
secret to her ; she was a real secret drawer. She could
not but love her father. I did wrong in choosing Isabey
as her drawing-master. Whenever I entered the studio
where he was giving lessons he was very embarrassed :
he was a fanatic. Prud^hon would have been better.
These people are always spying.

Maria Louisa was innocence itself. She was just the
opposite to Josephine and never lied. She loved me and
wanted to be always with me. If she had had good
advisers, and had mot been surrounded by such people as
that low woman Madame de Montebello (Lannes) and
that man Corvisart, who I must admit was a wretched
fellow, she would have accompanied me to Elba. But
she had been told that her aunt had been guillotined, and
circumstances were too much for her ; and then her
father had assisted by means of his buffoon Neipperg.

A SON IS BORN TO ME

For the birth of the King of Rome I paid Dr. Dubois
100,000 francs. It was Corvisart’s fault that I chose him,
for I might .as well have engaged the first obstetric surgeon
that came to hand. On- the day the Empress was delivered
she went for a long walk with me, although she already
had pains. Later it was thought that it would all be over
in four hours. I therefore had a bath. Shortly after-
wards Dubois came running up, excited and pale as
death. I called to him : ‘‘ Is she dead ? ” Great events
make no impression on me at the moment that they are
reported. That comes later on. I shall be reproached
for being devoid of feeling. I always feel the pain, however,

an hour later. j j k <-

Dubois answered that the Empress was not dead, pu
that the baby was offering the reverse presentation.

' BRILLIANCY OF THE EMPIRE, 1806-1811 151

That was a great misfortune and only happens once in
every 2000 eases. I dressed quickly, and went down to
the Empress. They had to place her on another bed in
order to use the instruments, but she would not let them.
Madame dc Montesquieu assured her, however, that she
had been through the same thing twice, and persuaded
her to let henclf be operated on. The Empress screamed
frightfully. I am not soft-hearted, and yet I was terribly
moved when I saw her suffering so much. Dubois, who
scarcely knew what he was doing, had been waiting for
Corvisart, who gave him courage. The Duchess of
Montebello behaved like a simpleton. Yvan and
Corvisart held the Empress.

The King of Rome remained at least a minute before
uttering a cry. When 1 entered the room he lay as
though dead on the carpet. Madame dc Montebello
wanted the usual etiquette to be observed, but Corvisart
told her to go hang with her etiquette. At last, after
vigorous rubbing the baby came to. It had been slightly
hurt by the instrument. Tire Empress had given herself
up for lost, and was convinced that they wanted to
sacrifice her life to save tire baby, and yet I had given
orders to the contrary.

CHAPTER VII

LOVE— WOMEN— MARRIAGE— FAMILY

WHAT IS LOVE ?

W HAT is^ love after all ? A passion, which
turns aside from everything — the whole world
— -just to get a sight of the loved object.
And I certainly have not been so constituted as to give
myself up to such one-sidedness.

I neither wanted to, nor could I, fall in love. Love is
made for other characters than myself. Political matters
claimed me absolutely. I did not want a house full of
women at my Court. Women have done harm to
Henry IV and Louis XIV. My position was, moreover,
much more serious than that of those princes. The
French have become stricter since then and would no
longer forgive their Ruler for having openly acknowledged
mistresses and love affairs.

WE TREAT WOMEN TOO WELL

We treat women too well, and in this way have spoiled
everything. We have done very wrong in raising them to
our own level. Truly the Oriental nations have more
mind and sense than we have in declaring the wife to be
the actual property of the husband. And in fact nature
has made woman our slave. Only through our distorted
views they now dare to maintain that they are our rulers.
They make a misuse of a few advantages in order to lead
us astray and master us. And if, now and again, one
woman really inspires us to something good, there are a
hundred others who cause us to nommit numberless
follies. Woman is given to man that she may bear him
children. But one woman cannot suffice for a. man in
this respect. She cannot be a wife to him, for instance,
during the time of pregnancy, of lactation, and of illness.

152

LOVE— WOMEN— MARRIAGE— FAMILY 153

She ceases to be so when she no longer gives him children.
The man who is influenced neither by old age nor by
other disabilities, must accordingly have several wives.

And what then have most of the ladies to complain of?
Have we not acknowledged that they have souls ? And
do they not know that there arc philosophers who arc
even in doubt of it ? They demand equality 1 But that
is surely madness ! Woman is our property ; we are not
hers ; she bears us children, we on the other hand do
not present her svith any ; consequently the wife is his
property, just as the fruit tree is the property of the
gardener. When a husband commits an act of unfaithful-
ness to his wife, he should confess it to her, and regret his
action ; then every trace of guilt is wiped away. The
wife is angry, forgives, and is again reconciled to him, and
often she even gains through it. But that is not the case
svith the unfaithfulness of the wife. It is all very well for
her to confess and regret, but wiio knows whether some-
thing remains? The evil cannot be made good again.
Therefore she must not, and cannot ever come to an
understanding with him. It is therefore only lack of
judgment, a fault in education, which causes the wife to
believe that she stands on the same level as her husband.
Moreover, in this difference there is nothing humiliating.
To each one what belongs to him, or her, and to each one
his, or her obligations. To women belong beauty, grace,
and the art of seduction ; her obligations are dependence
and suljeclion.

The woman is the complement of man’s animal
organisation, but still more necessary to the satisfaction of
his feelings. She is his natural helpmeet, created exactly
for him. Therefore he should take her for her osvn sake,
and cleave to her alone. He should deem her as one with
himself, pour out his heart to his other self, then they will
both feel strong against irregular lusts and experience
the charms of life. The charm of union beautifies the
imagination, assuages melancholy, and makes the joys of
life richer and more varied, besides making the field of
sensation more fruitful.

154

MEMOIRS OF NAPOLEON I

SHOULD CHILDREN OF I3 OR I4 BE MARRIED?

Would it be desirable for children of thirteen or fourteen
to marry ? One must answer in the negative and say

perhaps : • Eighteen for the male sex, and fourteen for the
lemale.

Why must one make such a great difference between
the male and female sexes? Perhaps to avoid certain
unpleasant happenings. The interests of the State here
merit more consideration. I would consider it less
disadvantageous to fix fifteen years of age for our sex than
thirteen for the female sex. For how can a child of this
age, who has nine months pregnancy to endure, be
properly developed ? Take the Jews for example. In
Jerusalem a girl is marriageable at the age of ten, at
sixteen she has lost all charm, and at twenty she is getting
old.

Children of fifteen are held incapable of concluding
any ordinary contract, how can they then be given leave
to sign the most solemn contract of their lives ? It would
be desirable for the male sex not to marry before the
twentieth year, and the female before the eighteenth year,
otherwise we shall never have a sturdy generation.

ILLEGITIMATE CHILDREN — ^SECONDARY WIVES — ^DECAY OF
, WOMEN — ^PROSTITUTES

I have done all in my power to improve the lot of
illegitimate children, those unfortunate yet innocent
people who are dishonoured. But one should not overdo
it, as otherwise one would be attacking the institution of
marriage. Then few people would marry. Formerly,
when a man had, besides his first wife, secondary wives,
illegitimate children were not so despised as they are
to-day. I think it absurd that a man may legally have
only one wife. When she is pregnant it is as if the man
had no wife at all. It is true men have no longer secondary
wives, but instead, men keep mistresses, through which
many have lost their fortunes. I am speaking only of men
in well-to-do circumstances, for the poor man could only
support one wife. In France the women have too much
authority, whereas they ought not to be considered as
being on an equality with the men, for they are, in reality,

LOVE— WOMEN— MARRIAGE— FAMILY 155

only madiines for bearing children. During the Revolu-
tion, they rose, called meetings, and wanted even to form
battalions. All this had to be suppressed. There would
have been a complete revolution in society if women had
emerged from that state of dependence in which it is their
duty to remain. It would have resulted in notliing but
ceaseless fighting.

One sex must be subject to the other. Women have
been known to take part in war as soldiers. Then they
are brave, incredibly enthusiastic, and capable of commit-
ting the most frightful atrocities. At my departure for
the Island of Elba in the year 1814 there was a handsome
young woman in Orgon who was in such a fury with me
that she would certainly have dnmk my blood if she
could. If ever there should be a war between men and
women it svill be very much worse than anything that has
been seen up to the present between big and little, white
men and black.

Divorce is all to the disadvantage of women. It makes
no difference to a man to be married several times ; but
a woman who has had several husbands is completely
faded. In a real war between men and women the only
thing that would put women in a state of inferiority is
pregnancy, for the women of the market-halls arc just as
strong as most young men.

In all periods of history sermons have been preached
against prostitutes, and for all that it is asserted that there
must always be public women, Witlmut them, men
would assault decent girls in the streets. When a pretty
girl is seen giving herself to men it injures her sex, and
lowers it; above all, it diminishes the charm which the
presence of a pretty girl produces in a company of people.

WHY 1 APPROVED OP DIVORCE

If the interests of good morals and of society require
that marriage should be lasting, it is perhaps just as
necessary to separate those married couples who cannot
live together, whose long union often swallows up the
common inheritance, dissolves the family, and causes the
abandonment of the children. To leave this kind of
union alone is to injure the sacredness of the marriage
bond.

156 MEMOIRS OF NAPOLEON I

It is intelligible that after ten years of marriage divorce
should only be granted on very serious grounds. As,
however, the marriages concluded in early youth are
seldom the work of the couple themselves, being mostly
arranged by their families in accordance with well-
defined considerations as to rank or quality, the first years
of such a union must be considered as probationary. If
tlie couple then perceive tliat they are unsuited to each
other, they must be entitled to dissolve the union which
they had not been allowed to consider seriously before.
It should not be done, ho’tvever, to favour frivolity or
passion. Let the Divorce Court, therefore, be provided
with precautionary measures to prevent tliis abuse. Let
it be defined, for instance, tliat both parties be heard in a
private family council under the presidency of an official,
and if need be, let it be added Aiat a ^voman may only
make use of divorce once. Further, tlie parties should
not be allowed to marry again before the lapse of five
years, so that the intention of a second marriage may
not be the cause of the dissolution of the first. After ten
years’ marriage, hov^ever, divorce must be made more
difficult.

Marriage is not always, as is supposed, tlie result of
love. A girl marries, for instance, because it is tlie fashion,
or in order to be independent, and have a home of her
own. She accepts a man much older tlian herself, ivhose
vie'ws, tastes, and habits do not agree witli her own. The
law must accordingly find ways and means of dissolving
the union in a case where she sees all her hopes frustrated,
■when she recognises tliat she is in a badly chosen
relationship, and her will led astray.

ADULTERY IS AT BOTTOM ONLY A JOKE BEHIND

A MASK

Laws are made to suit manners and customs. It
ivould have a disadvantageous effect if a man were placed
under the obligation of applying to tlie Courts for divorce
on account of adulte^>^ A reason of the kind must ne
hidden under the expression of mutual agreement m
ivhich, it is true, no reason is given for the divorce, but in

which its necessity is clearly indicated.

The family council examines the facts and decides on

LOVE— WOMEN— MARRIAGE— FAMILY 157

them. Such a procedure differs widely from tlie system
of those who consider simple incompatibility a sufficient
cause, which seems absurd to me. The fear arises of
allowing the most insignificant reasons to be made a
cause of divorce. If, for instance, the husband were in
agreement with his father, the wife’s father would refuse
his consent. He would say : “ I oppose. My daughter
is quite chaste ; if I gave my consent she would be con-
sidered guilty. You threaten her with legal proceedings.
Go on svith them. She is not afraid of anything. We
know how to conduct the case.”

If the wife, on the contrary, were guilty of adultery, the
parents svould ctjnscnt to the divorce. Adulter)-, which is
a word of enormous meaning in Civil Law, is at bottom
only an act of gallantry, a joke behind a mask.

It is not by any means a rare phenomenon, but a very
ordinary occurrence of the sofa.

FATItERS AND CHILDREN

It would simply rouse one’s indignation to allow a rich
man the right of driving his children out of his house to
earn their own living after having educated them. One
would then be obliged to forbid fathers to give their
children a good education ; for nothing is more terrible
to them than to tear them from the habits, the luxury,
and the inclinations which such an education brings with
it, in order to maintain themselves by laborious work to
which they arc unaccustomed. If the father believes that
he has no further obligations towards them as soon as he
has finished their education, why is he not completely
deprived of his succession ? Now, maintenance cannot be
measured simply in terms of physical needs, but account
must also be taken of customs ; further, it must be
proportionate to the father’s fortune and the child’s
education.

In truth the law cannot exactly define the amount, but
it can declare that the father is obliged to support and
educate his children when minors, and when they have
come of age, to provide for them, or grant them a
maintenance.

158

MEMOIRS OF NAPOLEON I

ADOPTION

Adoption has, as its chief purpose, the giving to orphans
of a father who, because he has only distant heirs, wishes
to take into his family a child to whom he intends leaving
both his name and his fortune.

It is of great importance that adoption of children
should only be allowed to a person who is of an age when
he, or she, can usually no longer hope to have children.

I do not understand a form of adoption which does not
grant to the adopted son the same rights as a legitimate son.

What is the sense of adopting a child if it may be given
back ? It has been objected that the will of the child has
not been considered, that it is contrary to freedom to
deprive a child of its natural father without its own
consent. Do people not know, then, that fathers are
made so by the law ? That people scarcely do anything
by the action of their own will. We have been living
since our childhood under the compulsion of laws and
customs. If one wished to fix the time in which a person’s
will first begins to act on its own impulse one might more
sensibly regard the 21st year as the age at which a person
has control over the exercise of his own will. One may
assert with good reason that a man of twenty-one is still
without experience and that his observation is obscured
by passions.

The happiest result of the adoption of children would
be attained by giving infants to. a man who is childless
himself by giving orphan boys a new father, and by
uniting youth with middle and old age. The conferring
of the name is the most natural, and, at the same time,
the strongest bond for the knitting together of this union.^

It has been asserted that the adoption of children is
only done from vanity. It possesses, however, real
advantages. It provides old age with protection and
consolation which is surer than that which may be expected
from relatives. It interests and at the same time encourages
the old in the education of the young. It helps, besides to
obtain for the childless merchant or^ factory ^

support and an heir. It trains good, citizens for the ota c,

and is a necessity for every rank in life. Kv

It is a happy idea to help a poor abandoned child oy

LOVE— WOMEN— MARRIAGE— FAMILY 159

adoption, and to snatch it from the corruption to which
it is exposed by its condition.

But, it will be asked, should one encourage tlie adoption
of bastards ? Meanwhile it would be a very desirable
thing if the injustice done by a man, who, through his
own dissoluteness has put a child into the world, could be
thus made good again without injury to morals.

JOSEPHINE

Josephine was extremely fond of luxury, disorder, and
the spending of money, qualities which arc peculiar to
the Creoles. It was impossible ever to determine her
outlay. She w’as always making debts, and there were
ahvays great disputes when the moment approached for
paying these debts. She often sent word to the tradesmen
to put down only half the amount of the bills. Even to
the Island of Elba Josephine’s bills were sent me from all
over Italy 1

Another of Josephine’s characteristics was her continual
denial. No matter what the occasion was, or what
question I asked her, her first act was of a negative kind.
Her first word was “ No.” And this “ No ” was not
exactly a Ue, but simply a measure of defence.

Josephine possessed an exact knowledge of all the
intricacies of my character, and with it all an admirable
tact. For instance, she never asked for anything for her
son, Eugene. She never thanked me for anything that I
had done for him. She was so amdous to prove to me
that it was for me and not for her to do something for him.

There is no doubt that she often thought that I would
adopt her son some day as my successor.

I am convinced that she loved me most. 1 do not
doubt that she would have refused a love adventure to
come to me. Under no consideration whatever would
she give up an intended journey however fatiguing it
might be. Neither weariness nor privation could keep
her from it. She even used importunity and wiles in
order to follow me. If, in the middle of the night, I got
into the carriage for a very long journey, I would find, to
my great astonishment, Josephine quite ready and wait-
ing, although it had not been arranged that she should
accompany me.

i6o MEMOIRS OF NAPOLEON I

“It is quite impossible for you to come with me, for
I am travelling very far, and the journey would be too
much for you,’’ I would say.

“ Not at all,” she would answer.

“ And then I must start in a moment.”

“ Good. I am quite ready, too.”

“ But you will need a lot of preparation.”

“Absolutely none. Everything has been thought- of.”
And in most cases I had to give way.

IN SPITE OF MY DETERMINATION TO PUT AWAY JOSEPHINE,

I FORGAVE HER (1799)

I wanted to have nothing more in comrhon with her,
and to forbid her the house. People would talk about it
for one or two days and forget it on the third.

At first, after my return from Egypt, I had told her to
go away. Why, too, was that ninny Joseph there . . . ?
But as she went down the stairs crying, I saw Eugene and
Hortense following her sobbing. Nature has not given
me a heart that I can see tears flowing without suffering
pain. Eugene had accompanied me to Egypt, and I had
become accustomed to look on him as my. adopted son.
He was so brave, and such a good boy. Hortense was
just about to make her entry into society, and everybody
was filled with praise of her. I confess I was badly
shaken, and I could not resist the sobbing of the two poor
children.

I said to myself : Are they to be the victims of their
mother’s error? I called Eugene back, and Hortense
returned with her mother. I said nothing. What else
could I do ? What a weak creature a man is 1

A FEW OF MY LOVE AFFAIRS

Madame Duchatel would never take anything from
me, not even a diamond necklace. I thought this behaviour
showed a very fine feeling on her part. And yet she
might as well have taken a few diamonds, but she did not
do so. She wanted to put herself on the same footing as
myself. I had written her a few love-letters
asked her, through Duroc, to return to me, for
wish to see them printed some day, a thing which h

Alexander 1

From a conlemporafv Engraving

LOVE— WOMEN— MARRIAGE— FAMILY i6i

happened to different princes. They belonged to her, it
is true, as much as to me ; but she granted my request.

I also paid court to Mademoiselle Mathis who acted as
lady companion to my sister Pauline. I gave her presents,
for she was not rich. Her father, who lived in Turin,
thought she was contracting debts, and made her come
home. She started off, but as soon as I had told her
father svhat had taken place he came back with her to
Paris. He thought he would accomplish great things.
I was in Lyons at the time. I saw her again. She told
me that her father had scolded her for not telling him
sooner ; as, however, I was just on the point, as I believe,
of divorcing Josephine, and was taken up svith my
approaching mamage with Maria Louisa, I broke off
this love relationship.

In Vienna in the year 1805, Murat said to me : “I
svill introduce you to a lovely woman who is madly in
love with you, and ivill have no one but you.” Although
this seemed a trifle suspicious to me, I told him to bring
her to me. She could not speak a word of French, nor
I a word of German. But she pleased me so much that
I spent the night with her. She was one of the most
agreeable women that I have knosvn, especially as she
did not use perfume. When day came she woke me, and
I have never seen her since. I could not find out at the
time who she was. In the year 1809, however, the chief
of the Vienna police told me that she was a “Judith”
(a Jewess).

inr BROTHERS AND SISTERS

Joseph has not exactly helped me by his efforts, but he
is a very good man. His ivife, Qjicen Julia, was the best
woman that ever lived. Joseph and I have always liked
each other very much, and always got on well together ;
he had a sincere liking for me. 1 have no doubt that he
did everything that was possible for a man to do, yet all
his good qualities are only adapted to private life. He is
extremely mild and good, possesses intelligence, is cultured
and amiable. In the high positions that I entrusted to
him he did all he could. His intentions were of the best.
The chief mistake does not lie with him but rather with
me. I have tom him from Hs natural setting, and the

1 62 MEMOIRS OF NAPOLEON I

task entrusted to him wras altogether out of proportion to
nis strength.

Louis had been corrupted by the reading of Jean
Jacques Rousseau. This Louis I had educated out of niy
pay, but at what great privations I It should be known
how I did it. I could never visit a coffee-house, or go
into company. I ate only dry bread, and wore my
clothes till the)f had holes in them so that they should last
as long as possible. Louis could only bi5 good to his wife
for a few months. Their mutual mistakes were too high
- demands on his part and too much frivolity on the part of
Hortense. ^ Nevertheless, they loved each other when they
were married ; they wanted' each other. This marriage,
moreover, was the result of Josephine’s intrigues, and she
has had to pay the costs. For my part I wanted to be
connected with other families, and for a short time I had
my eye on a niece of Monsieur Talleyrand, who later
became Madame Juste de Noailles.

>For the rest, the most absurd rumours were spread
about Hortense and myself, and it was asserted that her
eldest son was mine. But love affairs of that kind were
not in my mind,* nor do they correspond to my moral
conceptions.

Yet, after all, Hortense, the good, noble, and devoted
wife, is not without faults towards 'her husband. I must
admit that, in spite of all the affection which I feel for her,
and the real attachment which she has to me. Queer and
unbearable as Louis was he loved her all the same, and
in such a case, where such great interests were at stake,
she too must be allowed to love. If she had been able to
force herself to it, she would have been spared the vexa-
tions of the last few years. She would have led a happier
life and followed her husband to Holland. Louis would
not have fled from Amsterdam, and I should not have
found myself obliged to annex Holland, an act which has
contributed to my downfall in Europe. Many things
would have worked out differently. ^

; Jerome was a ^^waster ” whose unbridled conduct
cried aloud to Heaven. The excuse for his dissolute me
may be found in the times and the surroundings in wiiic
he found himself. On my return from Elba, however, e
seemed to have altered very much and gave cause for tiie

LOVE-WOMEN-MARRTAGE-FAMILY 1G3

best hopes. There is besides another cood witness in his
favour : I mean the love with which he has inspired liis
wife, Catharine of Wurttenberg. Tlie attitude of his
wife, svhose father, the horrible, despotic, hard King of
Wurttenberg, wanted to have her divorced from her
husband after my fall, is truly admirable. Tliis queen
has entered her name svith her own hand in the Golden
Book of History. .

Caroline Murat; Qjiccn of Naples, has been' educated
by events. She possessed knosvlcdgc, a strong character,
and an unbridled ambition. She had to suffer all the
more, of course, from my fall through' having been bom,
as it were, a princess. She never knew what it seas to be
a private citizen as I did. She, Pauline, and J^omc tecrc
all children when I svas already the first man in France ;

so they knesv only the time ofmy pow^.

Faulinc was very extravagant, lorsnc^lct herself go too
much. She ought to have been vc^ nch, aficr all tliat
I gave her. She used to give eswthing away again, and
her mother, who used, to seold her for it, often told her
that she would die in a poorhouse.

The Princess Stephame of Baden, shoMd herself more
clever than Hortensc. As soon as she hard of Josephine’s
divorce, she recognised the danger of Jicr position, and
clung more closdy to her husb.wd. Since tlien tlie
couple have been lading a most happy married hTc.

CHAPTER VIII

ON RELIGION, THE CHURCH, AND THE POPE

ON THE GODHEAD

E verything points to the presence of a God,
that much is certain ; but all our religions are
obviously the creations of men : why are there
so many? Why has ours not always existed? . . .
What has become of the people who have lived before us ?
Why do these religions mutually discredit each other?
Why are they continually at war with each other ? Why
has it always been thus everywhere ? It comes from this,
that men were always men, and the priests have always
and everywhere introduced lies and fraud-. In spite of
that, as soon as I attained to power, I restored religion.
I made use of it as a fundamental basis, a root ; it was in
my eyes the protector of good morals, of true principles ;
and then men^s minds are so constituted that they are in
absolute need of* the marvellous, the unlimited, which
religion offers us. It is better for a man to seek this in
religion than in a Cagliostro, a Lenormant, and all the
other soothsayers, adventurers, and rogues. ...

Whence do I come, where am I, whither am I going ?
All that exceeds my powers of comprehension. And yet
that is everything. I am the work that is in hand, and
does not know itself. In spite of that, the religious feeling
is so consoling that for him who possesses it, it is a real
joy of Heaven. ...

But how can one be convinced by the ridiculous words,
the iniquitous actions of those who preach to us ? I am
surrounded by preachers who repeat unceasingly that
their dominion is not of this world, and yet they possess
themselves of all the worldly dominion that they are ^Ne
to lay their hands on. The Pope is the Supreme Head m
this religion of Heaven, but he occupies himself only with ,
the earth.

164

ON RELIGION, CHURCH, AND POPE 165

CATHOUCISM OR PROTESTANTISM

IVhen I seized the helm of State my ideas as to all the
main elements which hold society together were fixed.
I had thoroughly tested religion, ss’as convinced of its
importance, and resolved to restore it. But it is difficult
to form an idea of the resistance which had to be over-
come in order to rdntroducc Catliolicism. People would
have preferred to see me hoist the Protestant banner.
Things even went so far, that in the Council of State,
where I had the greatest difficulty in getting the concordat
passed, several members did not appear, in order to
escape the discussion.

Certainly, after the disorder which preceded my reign,
and on the ruins of which I stood, I had the choice between
Catholicism and Protestantism ; and I must admit that
circumstances were leaning very much in favour of the
latter. But apart from the fact that I held to the religion
of my forefathen, still higher motives induced me to
decide in favour of the Catholic religion. What would
I have attained if I had introduced Protestantism ? I
would have created in France two great parties fairly
equal, while I wished to have no parties at all. I should
only have brought up the most frightful religious quarrels,
whilst it lay in the intention of the imlightcned century,
and in my tvill, to make them all disappear. The two
parties would have destroyed France tvith their continual
mutual provocations, and made her Europe’s slave,
while it was ray ambition to raise her to be Europe’s
master.

With Catholicism I should be much surer to attain my
goal and my great results. Within the country the bulk
of the people would absorb the small minonty, and I
vowed to treat them with such equality that soon one
would no longer notice any difference. Besides, Catholi-
cism would win over the Pope to me ; with my influence
and our power in Italy, I did not doubt that sooner or
later I should be able to guide the Pope by some means
or other. And then what an influence I should win !

MEMOIRS OF NAPOLEON I

1 66

WHAT I BELIEVE

Mong^, Berthollet, and Laplace are pure atheists. I
believe that man has been made from loam, warmed by
the sun, and bound together by an electric fluid. What,
are the animals, an ox for example, if not organic matter ?
So far, so good ! When we see that we have an almost
similar composition, are we not justified in believing that
man is only matter, somewhat better put together, who
almost approaches perfection. Perhaps one day beings
tvdll arise whose composition is still more, perfect.

Where is the soul of a child, of an insane person ? The
soul follows the body ; it grows with the child, and gets
smaller with the old man. If it is immortal it would have
already existed before our birth ; so it is deprived of
memory. At tlris moment, for instance, my thoughts are
in the Tuileries, I can see Paris.

In this way I used to account for presentiments. I
thought that the hand was reproaching the eye for lying,
as the latter insisted it could see a mile away. The
hand retorted : “I can see only two feet, how then can
you see a mile ? ’* So presentiments are the eyes of the
soul.

In spite of all this the thought of a God is simplest.^ Who
has created everything ? We are unable to lift this veil,
that goes beyond the perfection of our souls and our
comprehen^.7v-, - That is the Higher Power. The
simplest ideaTs to worship the sun which fructifies every'
thing. To sum up : I beheve that man has arisen from
the atmosphere warmed by the sun, and after a certain
time this force has ceased to work. Do soldiers believe in
a God ? They see so many dead around them.

I have often had explanations with the Bishop of
Nantes... I asked him where animals go when they die..
He told me that they have a special kind of soul, and went
into a certain first heaven. He agreed with all that I
thought about the estates of the clergy. ^ But he believed
in Jesus, and always spoke like a true believer.

I find that the most religious countries are those in
which the most good is being done. All religioiis smee
Jupiter preach morals. I should believe in a religion ii it
had existed since the beginning of the world. But when

ON RELIGION, CHURCH, AND POPE 167

I read Socrates, Plato, Moses, and Mohammed, I have no
more belief in it. It has all been invented by men.

ON THE VALUE OF MONASTERIES '

I must say unfortunately that I was not altogether
satisfied nith the abolition of the monasteries in Naples by
my brother Joseph. In everything that pertains to
religion the language used must always be in the spirit of
religion and not in the spirit of philosophy. That is the
great art of a ruler, which a scholar or an author docs not
possess.

INTiy speak of the services of the monks in the cause of
the arts and sciences ? Not that, but the distribution of
the sacraments is what makes them praiseworthy. It was
just like a philosophic treatise, which, in my opinion, was
out of place ; it amounted to abuse of the dismissed
monks. The introductory statement on the abolition of
the monks, in order to be effeetive, should have been
made in the monkish style. Men endure unpleasant
things more readily from some one who holds the same
views as themselves than from some one who is of the
opposite opinion. They should have been told that the
great number of the monks made their existence difficult,
and that the dignity of the State required that they should
lead decent lives.

ON THE JEWS

I svanted the Jews to leave usury and live like other
people. In the countries over svhich I ruled many Jews
lived. I granted tliem the same rights as the others and
placed them on an equal footing svitli the Catholics,
Protestants, and believers in other religions, and hoped to
make good citizens of them, who would behave m the
same svay as the other members of the parish. I believe
I should ultimately have succeeded. My conclusions
were these : As their Rabbis had explained to them that
they were never to employ usury against their own race,
but that they could do so against Christians and others,
I demanded in return from them, as I had restored them
their rights, that they should look upon me as the supreme
head of their people, somewhat like, Solomon or Herod,
and my subjects as brethren of their Tribe. Further,

1 68 MEMOIRS OF NAPOLEON I

th&t they 3,re not 3.11owedj in conse(juencej to practise
usury either on me or on them, but they are to treat us as
if we were of the Tribe of Judah ; also that they must
pay. the same taxes as the others, and must accommodate
themselves to the laws of conscription. In this way I
should obtain many soldiers. Besides, I should have done
much good to France, for the Jews are very, numerous,
and would have come in a flood to our count;y where
they would enjoy so many advantages. But, , above all,
I wanted to introduce general freedom of conscience.
It was not in my policy to have any predominant religion
in the countries I governed, but to grant perfect freedom
of conscience and thought, to make all men equal, whether
Protestants, Catholics, Mohammedans, Deists, or any
others, so that their religion should be no obstacle, or
have any influence on State appointments. I have made
everything independent of religion, including all juris-
diction. Marriage celebration no longer depended on
the clergy, nor were the latter left in control of the church-
yards, so that they could not refuse the burial of a person,
to whatever religion he might belong. It was my
tion to make everything belonging to the State and the
Constitution purely civil, without respect for any religion.
I wanted to take from the clergy aU influence and power
in State aflfairs, and compel theni to be satisfied wth then
own spiritual matters and not to interfere in anything els .

MY RELATIONS WITH THE POPE AND THE CHURCH

Since my youth I have paid quite special
the religious question. I have pondered a great
the history of the Sorbonne. This knowledge i

very useful to me as the conqueror and ^ r

and the restorer of religion in France. In r

had to study the Koran, for it was absolutely ^ ^
me, in laying the foundations of my power
people subject to Islam, to study from its origm,
of faith of the Four Sects, and their relations to
stantinople and Mecca. It is to these studms ,
the response to my advances and the help oi tti

Italy and the Ulema in Egypt* , , ^ ^nnrlusion

The assertion is false that I ever regretted th

ON RELIGION, CHURCH. AND POPE 169

of the concordat in 1801. I have never said that the
concordat was the greatest mistake of my reign.

I had differences of opinion with the Papal Sec, as they
continually tried to interfere in my rights as a ruler. It
may be that I was rightly impatient a few times, as I was
so badly misunderstood in everything tliat I wanted to do
for religion. It was a ease of the lion who felt himself
being bitten by gnats. But I have never altered either my
decisions or my principles. I believe still to-day, as I
believed in i8oi, that tlie concordat was useful and
necessary to religion, the Republic, and the Government.
The churches were closed and the priests persecuted.
They divided themselves into three sects, the Constitution-
alists, the Apostolic Vicars, and the Emigrant Priests
who were in the pay of England. Tlic concordat put an
end to this disorder. It caused the Catholic Apostolic
and Roman Church to rise again from its ruins. But
however good might be the intentions of the pious and
reverend Pius who, as soon as he heard of my plans, said :
“ Assure the First Consul that I shall be very pleased
indeed to enter into negotiations whose object is so praise-
worthy, so fitting to my holy office, and which so closely
corresponds to die wishes of my heart," the negotiations
tvith the Holy See turned out to be very difficult.

The Papal Sec appointed as plenipotentiaries Cardinal
Spina and a famous theologian. On the French side
Joseph Bonaparte, State-Councillor Cretet, and Father
Bernier, a former Vendeean leader, were chosen. One
would have thought that the immense interest of the
Holy See in the re-erection of the altars of Christ would
place all subsidiary questions in the background, but in
Rome the opposite is usually met with. The canonical
regulation, the admission of the consecrated priests to the
reorganised French Church, the authority for the sale of
church lands, were especially the cause of sharp debates.
On the other hand, the divorce question caused no
difficulty at all, and the Roman negotiators declared
their wllingness to allow the marriage of priests, if -the
First Consul would acknowledge the Pope’s exclusive
right to the solution of these questions. I declined to
admit the Pope’s right to legal intervention, as I rightly
regarded that as a matter'ior the French Law Courts.

ryo MEMOIRS OF NAPOLEON I

The Pope also wanted me to assign to him the right of
postponing the canonical regulation indefinitely, which
would mean that the Head of the State should give up the
right of appointing bishops.

I wanted to put an end to all tliis. I ordered my
ambassador in Rome to declare that if the Holy See had
not accepted my proposals and signed the concordat
within three days the negotiations would be broken off.
Inspired chiefly by the wish to bring the French people
back to religious feelings I was meditating whether I
should follow the example of Henry VIII or not.

Pius VII stirred himself, the Holy College trembled,
and Cardinal Gonsalvi travelled in haste to Paris. All
difficulties were settled, and the concordat was signed in
Paris on the 15th of July, 1801. The Papal See ratified it
in the same month as well as the Organic Articles which
were concerned with the carrying out of the concordat.

The marriage and divorce of the clergy are two impor-
tant questions which escaped the shipwreck of the highest
judgment of the Catholic Church. They are by no means,
as ignorant fanatics maintain, desecrations of the Holy
Sacrament. In all times the Councils have permitted the
separation of married people. The Council of Trent even
established rules for it. To raise a discussion on divorce
or its validity is to quarrel over trifles.

The celebacy of the clergy is only an aiming at per-
fection. The Councils have said so, and the truth of this
cannot be contradicted, for the same Councils have
granted to the Pope the power to free a priest from his
vows, and to allow him to marry.

Monsieur Talleyrand, who was Foreign Minister at the
time of the concordat, had been Bishop of Autun before
the Revolution, which did not prevent him later on from
marrying a Dutch woman named Grant with whom he
thought he was much in love. I wanted to make ^
cardinal. He obstinately refused, and secretly asked the
Pope to free him from his vows. Without my kn^ledge
the Pope granted his request, and Madame Grant became
Princess Talleyrand, without a voice being raised agamst
this marriage by the most -zealous defender of Ghurc

institutions. . ^

The concordat has raised the altars again, put an

ON RELIGION, CHURCH, AND POPE 171

to disorder, commanded the faithful to pray -for the
Republic, and settled all doubts as to the otvners of the
national estates. It has broken the last thread by which
the old dynasty was connected tvith the country, as the
supporters of the Bourbons reported the bishops to the
Pope as rebels, those same bishops who preferred worldly
interests to spiritual things and the cause of Heaven.

I have been told that I should not have interfered in
religious affairs, but should only have tolerated religion
and divine serviee, and given the churches back to the
believers. To practise religious worship ... but which ?
To hand over the churches . . . but to whom ? To the
Consdtutionalists, the Emigrant Clergy, or the Apostolic
Vicars, who were in the pay of England ?

During the negotiations over the concordat the question
was raised wheAer a period of time should be nxed for
the right granted to the Pope of appointing bishops.
But the Pope had already made great concessions. He
had agreed to the suirpression of sixty parishes which had
existed since the beginning of Christiarrity. Of his own
plenitude of power he deposed a large number of bishops,
and agreed, without any kind of indemnification, to the
sale of church lands of the value of 400 nrillions. I was of
the opinion that Rshould ask for nothing more in the
interests of the Republic. I had the right to say at the
time : “ If the Pope were not there, we should have to
create one for the occasion, just as the Roman Consuls in
difficult crises used to appoint a Dictator.” It is true
that through the concordat a foreign Power was recognised
in the State which was calculated to disturb the peace,
but it did not introduce it, as it had always been there.
As soon as I was master of Italy, I considered myself also
as master of Rome, and this Italian influence was useful
to me in counteracting foreign intrigues.

The documents printed in London on my relations
with Rome are apocryphal. These concessions were
never made. Through their publication it was hoped to
excite the imagination of the Spaniards and of all the
religious hypocrites in the world. The priests who were
not recognised by the concordat have been particularly
zealous in broadcasting them. Some of the writings are
false, others more or less disfigured. I have neither

172 MEMOIRS OF NAPOLEON I

directly nor indirectly promised legations, and the Pope
never made this condition a reward for his journey to
Paris. It is true that he would have felt flattered if he
had received, by way of imperial gratitude, the Romagna,
where his home Ccsena is situated. It is also true that he
has spoken about that during his stay in Paris, but only
by the Avay and wthout much hope of success. Mean-
while it is foolish to suppose that I could have asked the
Holy Sec to create a Patriarch of the Gauls. A patriarch
^vould only have had influence in France. The Pope, the
patriarch of all Christendom, extended his influence all
over the -world ; so I should have lost by the exchange.
It is just as foolish to suppose that I had asked for the
acceptance of the Book of Civil Law.

My direct correspondence vdth the Pope during the
years 1805 to 1809 remained secret ; but it had to do
mth secular affairs only in which I had no need of the
approval or opinion of his bishops. It was only when, in
the year 1809, the Pope addressed the Bull from Savona
to the cathedral chapters in Florence and Paris, that the
discussion passed into the realm of spiritual matters.
Then I felt the need of a Council and the intervention of
the clergy. I appointed a council of theologians, and the
choice that I made was very successful. Duvoisin, the
Bishop of Nantes, who was regarded for half a century p
the oracle of Christendom, was the soul of the Council.
From this period all the discussions were known to the
public.

When, after the Treaty of Amiens, Fox reproached me
for not having obtained permission from the Pope to
allow all priests to marry, I answered him : “ It was, and
still is, necessary for me to conclude peace ; theological
volcanoes are calmed \vith water not with oil ; it was not
easy to deal with Rome, and it would have caused me
less trouble to get my French countrymen to accept the
Augsburg Confession than to persuade them to have the

Mass read by a married priest.”

Since the Coronation there were all kinds of dispums
about cardinals’ hats, etc., but the two rulers did not ta e
part in these discussions directly. They were left
to the Chanceries, who handled all these anairs -wi
moderation and -wisdom.

ON RELIGION, CHURCH, AND POPE 173

The taking prisoner of the Pope was not done by me,
nor was it ordered by me. It is the personal work of
General Miollis, one of the old republicans who com-
manded the Republican troops in the Papal States. I
repeat ; never have the disputes between my Cabinet and
the Holy See had as their cause a religious question ;
they were all of a political nature, and dated from the
year 1 805, a period in which the squadrons of the Coalition
were threatening the coasts of Italy with an Anglo-
Russian invasion.

The fortifying of Ancona belonged to the general plan
for the defence of Italy. I charged my ambassador in
Rome to demand it from the Pope’s Government, and
proposed an offensive and defensive alliance between the
King of Italy and the Roman Court. The Pope refused
it, and answered that as Father of the Christian believers,
he would not enter into any league against his children,
and neither could nor would make war on anyone. I
answered : “ The histoiy of the Popes is full of alliances
with emperors, kings of Spain, or kings of France. Julius
has commanded an army himself; in the year 1797, I
have, as General Bonaparte, beaten the army of Pius VI,
which was fighting in the ranks of the Austrian Army
against the French Republic. And, if, in our days, the
baimers of St. Peter could float side by side svith the
Austrian Eagle, they can also very well wave on the walls
of Ancona as allies of the French Eagle. However, out of
respect for the conscience of the Holy Father, I agree that
the treaty of aUiance should temaiu limited to the case of
an attack by unbelievers or heretics."

In the mortal conflict between France and England
events were taking a rapid course. At all costs Ancona
must be occupied, for the safety of the Kingdom of Italy
depended on it. General Miollis received orders to put a

f arrison into it, and was charged tvith the defence of the
larches and the Legations. The Nuntius left Paris as
soon as he heard of this arrangement, and the representa-
tive of the smallest Power in the world, without the
slightest hesitation, declared war on the French Colossus.

I acted as though I were not in disagreement svith Rome,
and wrote to my ambassador to make no uIik,'
diplomatic relations with the Holy See.

174 MEMOIRS OF NAPOLEON I

Esslmgcn gave a momentary hope to the Coalition. The
excitement of the people showed itself at different places
in the Papal Slates. The cry : ** Death to the French ! ”
resounded in Rome, and General Miolhs found to his
horror that he was exposed to the fanaticism of a populace
which had been incited against him in the holy name of
Religion. He had scarcely 6000 men on a line of sixty
leagues, and in Rome itself there were less than 1500 men
to hold this great city in check. His position was very
critical. He remembered the frightful murders in Verona
in 1797, and in Rome in the year 1798, where General
Duphot fell, stabbed by some of the dregs of the populace
whom the pnests had stirred up. He could see safety only
in an unusual measure, and he took on himself the terrible

responsibility of violating the supreme Majesty of the
Pope. Yet he hesitated. Thereupon he received the
advice, even the autliority, to take the step, signed by the
hand of the Queen of Naples. From this moment all his
indecision ceased. In the middle of the night he caused
the Pope to be suspended from his functions, and then
took him away to Florence. A flash of lightning could
not be more sudden in its action. On the public squares
and on the hill-sides the threatening excitement of the
day before gave way to an uneasy paralysis.

The Grand Duchess of Tuscany was not a little astonished
that a general should act thus without orders from the
Emperor, and she was naturally horrified at her respon-
sibility, in case the Pope remained any longer in Tuscany.
She sent me messenger after messenger, and demanded of
General Miollis that he should lead the retinue along the
coast through the Genoese States. In this way the Pope
was brought to Savona.

My dissatisfaction had risen to the highest point. 1
understood at once the vexations that would result to me
from this action, and my first thought was to bring the
Pope back to the Vatican. Meanwhile, all the visions ot
General Bonaparte, all the plans of the Emperor for f
were beginning to become realities by the carrying off ot
the Pope. Of three obstacles which permanently blocked
the way to Italian unity, two had already disappeared
through my will ; the third, on which my thoughts had
never ventured to- dwell, the residence of the Vicar 01

ON RELIGION, CHURCH, AND POPE 175

Christ in Rome, was falling through one of those inexplic-
able combinations of Destiny which transferred the Seat
of St. Peter from the banks of the Tiber to those of the
Seine. Paris would be the metropolis of the great Empire
and the Seat of tlic High Priest of eighty million Catholics.
The spiritual power of the Pope would, of course, increase
through the support of tlie temporal supreme power of
the Emperor, and the splendid times of the Church would
return. The transference of the residence of the Popes
would be a fact svhich would contribute to the happiness
and good fortune of the Empire.

I accepted it, and wrote to the Bishop of Nantes, the
Abb6 Duvoisin, whose lofty God-fearing services I appre-
ciated very highly, and with whom I was in correspond-
ence : " Do not be troubled. Tlie policy of my States is
closely knit with the maintenance of the Papal Power.
I want him to be more powerful in Paris than in Rome.
He svill never possess as much power as my policy intends
to mve him.”

The Bishop of Nantes preached the Catholic religion
through the tvisdom of his common-sense reasoning, and
the excellence of his moral teaching. He had my complete
respect, and my full confidence. 1 used to ask his advice
in all church affain.

The suspension of the Pope was not an act of my will.
It was one of those occurrences which so often take place
in politics as in the life of the individual.

The whole of the Emperor’s house in Turin was placed
at the disposal of the Pope. In Savona he lived m the
Archbishop’s palace where he could live in a way corre-
^onding to his rank. The Steward of the Civil List,
Count Salmatoris, prorided him with everything necessary.
He remained there several months, during which I offered
to allow him to return to Rome, if he agreed no longer to
disturb public tranquillity, to recognise the new Rule
introduced into Rome, and to occupy himself only with
church affairs. But when he noticed that the world went
on without liim he sent Bulls to the Archiepiscopal
Chapters of Florence and Rome, in order to disturb the
management of the unoccupied dioceses, while at the
same time Cardinal Pietro rvas sending Papal Vicars into
these dioceses. At that time the discussions, which for

176 ^ MEMOIRS OF NAPOLEON I

five years until then had been moving on temporal
ground, passed over to the ecclesiastical. That was the
occasion of the first and second meetings of the bishops in
the Paris Council, of the Bull of 1811, and finally of the
concordat of Fontainebleau in the year 1813.

Nothing %vas decided as yet touching the temporal
power of Rome. This uncertainty encouraged the Pope
to resistance. Angry at this state of things, which had
lasted without intermission for five years, I decided to
order the separation of the temporal and spiritual powers.
I could no longer suffer the Pope to be a holder of
temporal power. Jesus Christ had said : “ My kingdom
is not of this w^orld.” As heir to the throne of David he
wished to be High Priest and not King.

I understood better than anyone the interests of the
Church. The power that the Catholic Church has
gained in France in the last forty years is owing to me.
The concordat of 1801 created much ill-feeling. The
most famous generals have accused me of betraying the
Republic. One of them, General Lames, who was in
command of the Grenadiers of my Guard, even dared to
reproach me in my private study. His excitement,
however, cooled do^vn in a moment, before the fatherly
calmness with wliich I listened to him, and on the very
same evening he started on a diplomatic mission to
Lisbon. Madame de Stael had placed herself at ^e head
of the dissatisfied people of the Paris salons, and said to the
Republicans : ‘‘Just look ! To-morrow the tyrant will
have 40,000 priests as supporters.”

In all my disputes mth the Holy See I have shown
more patience than is in keeping with my position and
character, and if in my letters to the Pope, I have son^-
times used biting sarcasm, I was always provoked to it by
the bitter style of the Roman Chancery. The Court m
Rome would have avoided all the trouble if they had
openly attached themselves to the French system, had
closed their harbours to the English, had of their own
accord called a few French battalions to the defence or
Ancona, and finally, upheld peace and order in Italy.

Later on, the Pope did me justice. ^ When he heard or
my landing in Cannes he said to Prince Lucien, with a
look that expressed his confidence : “ He has gone aw^y

.ON RELIGION, CHURCH, AND POPE 177

and come back, and you are going to Paris. It is well so.
Conclude peace between him and me ; I am in Rome,
and he wll never have any unpleasantnesses to expect
from me.”

The man bom into the world asks himself: Whence
do I come ? Where am I ? Whither am I going ?
Mysterious questions which urge him to religion. We all
go to meet religion, for our natural impulse drives us to it.
We believe in God, for everything around us proves His
presence. The greatest minds have believed : not only
Bossuet, but Newton and Ldbnitz. As a man feels the
need of believing, he believes. Assuredly, if one ponders,
one svill doubt in most cases ; yet one says to oneself
then : “ Perhaps I shall believe again, blindly, for it
is God’s tvill.”

The religious man never doubts the presence of God,
for, if intelligence is not sufficient to understand it, it is
the instinct of the soul that grasps it. Everything that is con-
nected svith the soul sympathises svith the religious feeling.

Wlien I reached the highest power 1 recognised the
whole importance of religion. It tvill be difRcult to
understand the resistance that I had to overcome in
raising again the altars of Catholicism. The Council of
State were not at all well disposed towards the concordat.
The most of its members, and notably those standing
highest in the public estimation, resolved to become
Protestants, in order to be independent of Rome, in case
the Church should again seize the sceptre that the Revolu-
tion had broken. Everything favoured the Reformed
Church. But, apart from the fact that I personally clung
to the religion of my forefathers, I had the highest political
reasons for deciding in its favour. What should I have
gained if I had introduced Protestantism ? I should have
aroused religious fanaticism again, and created new
parties, white it was the chief object of my ambition that
there should be no more parties in France, and that all
Frenchmen should flock trader the banner of national
interests. Parties, by whatever names they may be
called, weaken the social corporation, and give an
field to the intrigues of the foreigner. None of
dangers is to be feared from Catholicism.

178 MEMOIRS OF NAPOLEON I

Catholicism had the great advantage of winning for me
the Holy See. And what an influence I should then have
with 80 million Catholics 1

Pius VII liked me personally. Never has a discordant
note marred the harmony of our close personal relationship
in consequence of our differences of opinion as rulers.
And this esteem and mutual goodwill must be ascribed to
the^ signing of the concordat of Fontainebleau through
which tlie Pope gave up temporal power.

The Pope left Paris after the Coronation without having
received the thanks which he thought he had merited.
He wished for the carrying out of the famous donation of
the Countess Matilda, and showed me the letters of
Louis XIV who in the last years of his reign had stripped
bare the honour of the Cro^^m of France. After having
read the letters I threw them into the fire instead of
giving them back to the Pope. He was very angry at this
independent action.

The execution of the donation would have meant no
less than sacrificing the interests of the State in order to
pay a debt of personal gratitude. For nothing in the
world would I have granted such a request. The Sacred
College did not forgive me for it and became hostile to
me. Since that lime Rome became the centre of all the
plots forged against me.

Pius VII remained for six months in Fontainebleau.
His Court was composed of Cardinals Bayanne, Ruffo,
Roveredo, Doria, Dugnanio, the Bishop of Edessa, and
various almoners. French prelates, and some from the
Kingdom of Italy, were also to be found at his Court, at
my wish, with instructions to lead the way to reconcilia-
tion. They were Barnal, the Archbishop of Tours,
Maury, the Archbishop of Paris, the Bishops of Nantes,
Trier, Evreux, Piacenza, Fetre, and Faenza. _

Apart from the great question of the temporal doinimon
of the Popes, there were also questions of subsidia^
importance. For instance, it was impossible to obtain the
Bulls for the installation of the bishops appointed to the
vacant dioceses. Besides that, the Pope continued to
refuse to consecrate the bishoprics created by me in
Hamburg, Amsterdam, and Diisseldorf for the spread 01
the glory of Catholicism.

ON RELIGION, CHURCH, AND POPE 179

In the interests of relipon I demanded tliat the Holy
See should prepare rvithin a fixed time the above-men-
tioned Bulk, just as the Ruler, on the basis of the concordat
of 1801, must, in a given time, appoint bishops for the
vacant secs. The Pope seemed to be rvilling at last to
yield to these just rvisnes. The bitterness on the part of
the cardinals seemed, as the Bishop of Nantes rvrote me,
to have sensibly diminkhed. I determined on a personal
step, in order to reach complete reconciliation, being led
thereto, as well by the interests of my policy as by my
religious feelings. I rightly counted on the friendship and
esteem which the Pope had never ceased to show me in
spite of our disputes as Rulers.

I induced the Prince of Ncuchatcl to get up a hunt on
his estate of Grosbois near Mclun, and when the hunt was
in full swing, I rode to Fontainebleau where I arrived
rvithout bdng c-xpcctcd by anybody. Here I went to the
Pope. He was quite touched by this unexpected honour,
and gave me a hearty reception. He responded to my
advances in the liveliest and friendliest manner. The
meeting lasted a few hours. From this moment the
resistance was broken. Tlic conversation took place in
the Italian language, and was characterised by the words
of affection which we mutually spoke on meeting : “ San
padre ” ; " Figlio mio.” The Pope accepted Avignon
provisionally as his place of residence, and -without
completely giving up his claim to the temporal possession
of Rome, he agreed to come to an understanding on the
compensations, and accepted a fixed period of time for
makmg out the Bulk.

The groundwork having been laid, I at once dictated
the new concordat. The Pope was present, and consented
by a word or a nod to each of the stipulations. The
cardinals were entrusted with the proper editing of the
work, and took four days over it. On the 25th of January,
1813, the concordat was signed in the presence of the
whole French Court, joined by that of the Holy Father, so
as to lend as much ceremony as possible to the ratification.
The Empress also was present. All the words and actions
of the Pope signified the joy and '' ’ ’ 'heart.

He seemed to be happy at last on seeing
restored between himself and the ^

CHAPTER IX
MY CONTEMPORARIES

/I LEXANDER of Russia is a true Greek ,of the
time of the fall of the Eastern Roman Empire ;
X ^ he was not to be trusted. He is, however, a
cultured man, and has some enlightened ideas which
have been instilled into him by a Swiss philosopher
named Laharpe, whose pupil he was. But he is so super-
ficial, so false, that one cannot tell whether the feelings
which he sho^vs are sincere, or~whether he likes, from
vanity, to appear different from what is prescribed by
his position. I remember we once had a conversation on
the various forms of government. Alexander spoke on
behalf of the choosing of monarchs. I was of the opposite
opinion, for who would be fit to be chosen ? A Caesar, a
Charlemagne, of whom you cannot find one every five
hundred years ? So choice is after all mere chance, and
succession to the throne is better than a throw of the dice.
During the fortnight that we spent in Tilsit we dined
almost daily together. We used to rise from the table
very quickly, however, in order to get rid of the King of
Prussia who was a bore. About nine o’clock Alexander,
used to come and drink a cup of tea with me, and we
often talked till two or three in the morning on politics,
philosophy, or literature.

Augereau was a sergeant when the Revolution broke
out. He did not know how to behave in company, had
no kind of culture, no broad-minded ideas, and no educa-
tion. But he insisted on order and discipline in his
soldiers, and was loved by them. His^ attacks were made
according to rule and carried out in good order, he
disposed his columns of attack well, placed out his reserves
cleverly, and fought unflinchingly.

CONTEMPORARIES 183

Barras, a nobleman from Provence, iiad distinguished
himself in tlic “ Dl5eussions.’’_ He only uttered a few
sentences, but these worked like claps of thunder. He
had all the habits of a fencing-master, was a braggart and
a swaggerer ; yet he was useful in an insurrection. But
I had the greatest difilculty in the world, on the igtli
Vendemaire, to get the order from him to have Uic
insurgents fired on, but I attached the greatest importance
to tlic receiving of tliis order.

Barras was a very immoral man. He was dissolute and
shameless, and stole quite openly. But he was the only
man in the Directory who possessed decent manners, who
could receive people and convene with them. He had
got into the h.abit of being silent during the Discussions,
and not expressing any opinion, so that he could criticise
everything that his colleagues did. He had a certain
revolutionary sharpness, and let his opinion be knossm
only after the event. He was extremely false, and shook
hands svith people svhom he svould have preferred to stab.
It seems tliis falseness was very useful in the Parties. He
was very ignorant, and tlic only name he knew in History
was that of Brutus which he often heard repeated in the
Convention. He always showed himself friendly with me,
although he sent me to Egypt to get rid of me.

Berthicr has everything to his advantage : talent,
energy, courage, and character (179^.

The lack of genius and his insignificance arc the cause
of his dishonourable conduct in the year 1815. All tlic
same the Marshal was not without talent, yet his talents
and his merit were of a special and technical nature.

In my campaigns Berthicr was always to be found in
my carriage. _ During the journey I used to study the
plans of the situation and the reports sent in, sketch out
my plans for battle from them, and arrange the necessary
moves. Berthicr would watch me at work, and at the
first stopping-place or rest, whether it was day or night,
he made out the orders and arrangements with a method
and an exactness that were truly admirable. For this
work he was always ready and untiring. That was

1 84 MEMOIRS OF NAPOLEON I

Bcrthicr’s special merit. It was very great and valuable
and no one else could have replaced Berthier. ^

*

Bcssi6rcs was cool, brave, and calm under fire. He had
very good eyesight. As a cavalry commander he was
very clever and especially suited to command a reserve.
He and Murat were the best cavalry officers in the army,
yet they possessed qualities quite opposite to each other.
Murat was an adventurous and hot-headed general of the
advanced troops, while Bcssi6res commanded the reserves,
and was very energetic, but, at the same time, wise and
cautious. ^ ■

Bhicher is a very brave soldier and a good broad-
swordsman. He is like a bull that looks all round him
with rolling eyes, and ^vhen he secs danger, charges. He
used to make mistakes by the thousand, and if it had not
been for other circumstances, I should have captured him
many a time with the major portion of his army. He is
stubborn and untiring, kno^vs no fear, and is very patiiotic.
He has no talent as a general I remember while in
Prussia, ^vhen he dined -with me after being made prisoner,
that he was considered at that time as a ver>^ unimportant
person.

In spite of that I cannot deny my recognition of General
Bliicher. The old rascal ahs^ys attacked me with the
same fur>\ After tlie most terrible beating he would be
on his feet again tlie next moment and ready for the fray.

Cambac6res ^vas universally liked. His political career
was not dishonoured by excesses of any kind. He rightly
enjoyed the reputation of being one of the best jurists of
the Republic. Under Chancellor Maupieu he had
distinguished himself by the purity and elegance of his
style. Besides, he was one of tlie best authors in France.

Carnot was a good ^vorker in evei^^thing he did,
without intrigue, but easy to deceive. He was useful,
without, however, deserving the eulogies mat were
bestowed on him. He had no experience whatever o

MY CONTEMPORARIES 185

warfare. His ideas on the art of war were false, even on
the attack and defence of fortified places, as well as on the
principles of fortificafion, which he had, nevertheless,
studied trom his youth. But hc_ showed much moral
courage. He felt the need of pleasing, and let himself be
led away by foreign party leaders.

Clarke possessed no rtulilary gciuus. He was rather a
bureaucrat, an exact and conscientious worker, and a
sworn enemy of rogues and rascals.

He s\-as most unsuited to the leadership of any kind of
army. He was very observant. For the rest, he was
industrious and incapable of being bribed.

Desaix possessed in tlic highest degree that balance
between mind and character, or courage, wliich is necessary
to a great general. He was a small, dark-cyed man,
altva^-s badly dressed, sometimes even ragged, and scorned
the amenities and comforts of life. Nature created him to
be a great general. Kleber and Desaix were an irreparable
loss to France.

*

Duroe, in spite of a rather commonplace exterior,
possessed the best and most useful qualities. He liked me
for myself, and was not afraid to tell me the truth openly.
As Grand Marshal he furnished and arranged the palace
admirably, and kept cvcrytliing in perfect order. His
death was an irreparable loss to me.

*

Intrigue was as necessary to Fouchd as his daily bread.
He intrigued at every time, in all places, in every ivay,
and svith everybody.

Friron was quite different from Barras : he was an
extraordinarily daring man. On the 13th Venddmairc he
brought about the disarming of the Sections. In the
Prainale he ventured to propose to me that he should go
to the Section of the “ Fifteen-Twenty,” in order to fetch
my brave men. I tried to dissuade him from it, and

1 86 MEMOIRS OF NAPOLEON I

assured him that the people of the Faubour? Saint-
Antoine would murder him. He did it. however, and
3 rougnt me 200 men. That is what you may call bravery !

*

The Emperor Francis of Austria is less gifted than
Alexander, but he is honester. I would much rather have
trusted him than the Czar, and if he had again given me
his word to do a thing, I knew that from the moment that
he had given his promise he had the intention of keeping
it. The military knowledge of the King of Prussia, on the
other hand, is no greater than that of a corporal. Of the
three he is unquestionably the least intellectual.

❖

King Charles IV of Spain is a good man. I do not
know whether it is due to his position or to circumstance
that he has acquired the reputation of a sincere and good
patriarch. As for Queen Maria of Spain, her heart and
her life’s history are written on her face. That is enough
for those who know her.

Prince Ferdinand of the Asturias is very unintelligent,
very malicious, and an enemy of France.

The “ Prince of the Peace,” Godoy, has the appearance
of a bull. He bears a certain resemblance to Daru.

Kleber was gifted with the most prominent talents, yet
he was only a man of the moment. He sought fame as
the sole way to enjoyment. He was, moreover, not very
nationally-minded, and would not have required much
persuasion to serve a foreign country.

*

Lannes’s courage at first outweighed his thinking
faculty, but the latter tended more and more to preserve
the balance. When Lannes fell he was standing on the

highest step of his development. ^

He was a man very well experienced m war, was
extremely brave, and perfectly cool under fire. He ha a
sharp, penetrating glance, ready to seize every advan^
offered him. He was violent and hasty in ^is expressions,
and as a general he was superior to both Moreau and
Soult.

MY CONTEMPORARIES 187

^Vhcn a man is about to give up bis life he clings to it
witli all his might. Lannes, the bravest of all men, who
was robbed of botli his legs, did not want to die, and was
so angry that he wanted to have the two surgeons hanged
for blundering svith a marshal, because they could not
save liim. In the hour of his death he clung to _mc, and
would have nobody but me. It was a kind of instinct !
Certainly he loved his wife and children more than me,
yet he did not speak of them, for he e-xpeeted nothing
from them. I was his protector. I was something indefin-
able to him, something higher. I was the Providence on
whom he called. ^

Larrey is the dcccntcst man and the best friend of die
soldiers whom I have ever known. Cauuous and indefatig-
able was Larrey in the practice of his profession, even in
the worst season of the year. At all times of the day and
night Larrey was to be found with his wounded. He
scarcely allowed his assistants a moment’s rest, and kept
them so hard at work that they barely had time to breathe.
He svorried the generals, and often roused them during
the night when he needed provisions or help for the sick
and wounded. Everyone was afraid of him, for people
knew that he would go straight to me and complain. He
paid court to no one and was the sworn enemy of the
army contractors. ^

We condemn Louis XVI, but apart from his weakness
he was the first prince who was attacked. He was the
subject of experiment of the first new principles. His
bringing up and his inborn-ideas led him to consider in
good faith that everything that he publicly or privately
tried to defend belonged to him. Even in his lack of faith
there lay a kind of belief if one may say so. Now, of
course, when everybody is instructed in conditions of that
kind, such conduct would be inexcusable, even worthy of
condemnation. And when it is added that Louis XVI
had everyone against him, one can get a rough idea of the
numberless difliculties which his fatal destiny took a
delight in hewing on him. The much-spoken-of mis-
fortune of the Stuarts was not greater than his.

i88 MEMOIRS OF NAPOLEON I

Macdonald is a brave and trustworthy soldier. It is
only during the last years of the Empire that I was able to
appreciate fully the nobility of his character. His relations
With Moreau had prejudiced me against him. I did him
an injustice, however, and much regret not having known
him better.

*

Massena was a distinguished man ; only in the thick of
the fight had Nature granted him that all-important
equipoise ; he grew with danger.

He was of strong build, riding day and night without
fatigue. He was a determined, brave, and unflinching
man, full of ambition and self-satisfaction. The pre-
dominant element in his character was stubbornness, and
he never lost courage. He neglected discipline, troubled
himself little about the administration, and was con-
sequently not particularly popular with the French
troops. He used to sketch a battle plan rather badly.
His conversation was not at all interesting. But with the
first cannon-shot, in the hail of bullets, and in all dangers,
his thoughts became strong and clear. When he was
beaten, he would begin all over again as if he had been
the victor.

*

Moreau, compared with the generals of the first rank,
was rather unimportant. In him Nature did not perfect
her creation. He possessed more instinct than genius.

*

Murat possessed quite an original character. I have
done him an injustice in removing lum from me, for
without me he was nothing. By my side he was always
my right hand. When I ordered him to^ overthrow a
force of some 4.000 to 5000 men in a given direction it was
for him the work of a moment. But if I left hini to himseli
he was a weakling without any judgment of his owm It
is inconceivable to me how a brave man could often be so
cowardly. He was only brave in the presence 01 the
enemy, in that case perhaps the bravest man in tne.
world. His impetuous courage carried hirn into tne
midst of danger. And then he was decked out in gold and

MY CONTEMPORARIES 189

feathers that rose above his head like a church tower.
He escaped continually as by a miracle, for he was easily
recognised by his dress. He tvas a regular target for the
enemy, and the Cossacks used to admire him on account
of his astonishing braver)’.

In the field Ncy was a real paladin, but after all is said,
a Don Qubtote. In his workroom he showed liimsclf a
braggart without judgment and decision. Murat and
Ncy were the two bravest men I have known ; Murat’s
character, however, was nobler, for he was generous and
frank.

*

Pichegru had been an usher in Brienne, and had
taught me mathematics when I was only ten years old.

As a general Pichegru w.ts a man of c.vtraordinary
talent, very much greater than Moreau, although he has
not accomplished anything very prominent. The results
of his campaigns in Holland were for the greater part the
consequences of the Battle ofFlcurus.

Savary is not a bad man. On the contrary he has an
excellent heart, and is a brave soldier. He loves me with
all the aftection of a father.

*

Soult is a distinguished Minister of War, and a very
valuable Chief of the General Staff. He is better, how-
ever, at arranging an army in position than in commanding
one.

*

Madame dc Stacl was fiery in her passions, furious and
raging in her expressions. She was Coriima herself !

But yet one must recognise that she is a very talented
and characteristic svoman. She possesses much intellect
and svill live in posterity.

Her mind is so fond of intrigue and so restless that it is
said of her that she is ready to throw her friends into the
sea, so that she may rescue them when they are on the
point of drowning.

I go MEMOIRS OF NAPOLEON I

Talleyrand was the meanest of usurers. He is a vile
flatterer, a corrupt man who has betrayed all parties and
all men. Clever and cautious, always disposed to
treachery, but always in league with his fortun£ Tallev-
rand treats his enemies as if some day they may become
ms iriends, and his friends as if they are bound later on to
become his enemies. He is a talented man, but corrupt
m every respect. Nothing could be got from him except
by corrupt -means. The Kings of Wurttemberg and
Bavaria often complained to me about his robbery and
extortions, so that I took from him the post of Minister.
I also learned that he betrayed to certain plotters a very
important secret that had been entrusted to him alone.
He despised the Bourbons whole-heartedly. When I
returned from Elba Talleyrand wrote to me from Vienna,
in order to offer me his services, and proposed to betray
the Bourbons on condition that I pardoned him and
restored him to favour. As a motive he quoted a cutting
from my proclamation to the effect that there were
circumstances which could not be resisted. But I thought
that I must make a few exceptions, and refused his request,
for if I had punished nobody there would have been
general discontent.

Talleyrand made money out of everything, and had a
special talent for Stock Exchange usury. I am convinced
that he sold certain documents to the English, no very
important ones, it is true, but yet letter of some small
interest, which he sent to Pitt. He was informed that he
would receive 20,000 francs for every document. The
Prince of Benevento is not a man of pre-eminent talent,
for he hates work, but he possesses the art of saying
nothing, giving no advice, and letting others speaK
instead. In order to give your neighbour good advice
you must have a liking for him j but Talleyrand thoug
only of his personal interest. A thing that might be ot the
greatest importance to the State signifies nothing ^ j
and is put aside, if it does not bring him^ in anyto^
One may indeed assert that this man is immorality
personified. .Never have I seen a more

can

without trouble sit up till two or three in the mommg,

MY CONTEMPORARIES 191

which is very important for a statesman. At that hour he
may meet people and speak with them without its becom-
ing known. Talleyrand drew up the report on the con-
dition of the Republic in the year VIII {1799). Tlic
report is very well framed, and is very well suited to form
the groundwork of an historical treatise. On the whole
I think that Talleyrand is the best man there is for the
post of Foreign Minister. He gives many parties and
understands how to make people talk. He is proud like
all the Pirigord family, but he might have had a more
intellectual wife than the one he married (Madame
Grant).

Murat was a trifle too clumsy and vain for Foreign
Affairs. Caulaincourt did not write enough. No doubt
TallejTand was the best Foreign Mim'stcr.

Madame Tallicn often visited Madame Be.auhamais,
with whom she was on very friendly terms. Barras,
FnSron, and Dulaulois were among her admirers. That
was all very well before my marriage ; but during my
campaigns m Italy it was unbearable. When, however,
circumstances had made me the First Officer of the
Republic, I had to cleanse the drawing-rooms of the First
Lady of the Republic of all these relics of the society of Uie
Directory. Tliat caused me much unpleasantness. It
was tlic same with Isabey, who fancied that, as he was
often in the Malmaison garden, he could forget the
enormous gap that lay between us. _Hc would venture
to clap me on the shoulder when playing with the young
adjutants.

Madame Tallicn strove with all her might to gain
admission to the Court. Hosvcver,_ she was sensible
enough to understand me when I said to her ; " How
can you expect me to forget your fame and the many
children that you have from everybody." Her svish was
always the subject of our convenauon whenever she
succeeded in approaching me, which happened at all the
masked balls that I visited. Every year I gave masked
balls through CambaciSris, or through my Ministers.
That gave me a favourable opportunity of learning
personally the attitude of the Paris salons.

192 MEMOIRS OF NAPOLEON I

Poor Madame Tallien was, for the rest, the best ^vomal\
in the world. Her heart ^^’as as good as her iace was fah\
The services %vhich she rendered arc innumerable. The
nobler especially were heaped ^vith her favours, and many
of them O'vvc their lives to the wife of the former member
of the Convention, Tallien. So long as danger threatened
they continued their flattering attentions to this lady, but
when my elevation to po^ver became, a pledge of lawful
security to all Frenchmen, Madame Taliien^s drawing-
rooms suddenly became empty.

CHAPTER X

FROM THE SUMMIT TO THE FALL, 1815-1815
WIY 1 DECIDED OS WAR ^V^^I RUSSIA

I AM convinced that I have never broken the treaty
of loyalty sworn in Tilsit and Erfurt. I will do the
Czar Alexander the justice of believing that he was
ruled by cireumslanees that were more powerful than his
personal will. I also accept, as from a brother, the
assuranees that he gave me through Count Balmain, as
well as the hospitality which he offers me in his territories
whereby he regrets tliat I have not asked it of him instead
of trusting myself to the English.

After having said this I will amwer the three questions
which were put to me through the above-mentioned
diplomatic agent in the name of the Czar Alexander ;

:. The occupation of tlie Grand Duchy of Oldenburg
was not the result of any order of mine. It took place
rather by the action of the Prince of EggmQhl who was by
nature a policeman in his strictness. He knew that the
Duchy was tlic depot of English merchandise for Germany.
In spite of his 80,000 soldiers and Customs officers he
could do nothing to stop it, and was therefore convinced
that it would please me if he occupied the coast of Olden-
burg ssitli his light troops. He knew very well that 1
should refuse to approve of this want of respect towards a
Grand Duchess of the Imperial Russian Family. But he
hoped that I would confirm a Jait accompli as soon as I
saw the proof of its usefulness in the enormous value of
the English wares confiscated in Oldenburg.

Marshal Davout was persuaded that he would one day
receive the Polish Crown as a reward, as I had given
him a rental of 200,000 francs in Poland. His secret
ambition urged him to every possible action that had as
result complications in my relations with the Cabinet of
St. Petersburg. I disapproved completely of the violation
N 193

194 MEMOIRS OF NAPOLEON I

of the Oldenburg territory, and was determined, in spite
of the great advantages which French industry would
doubtless draw from it, to command the withdrawal of
my troops, when my attention was drawn to the threaten-
ing tone of the note which was handed to me on this
occasion from the Russian Cabinet. They demanded the
immediate evacuation of Oldenburg and the cession of
Danzig as a Russian harbour, or as a free city for Russian
trade, as indemnification for the occupation of the Olden-
burg coast. That meant obviously the prevention of any
proper understanding. From the moment in which the
honour of France was at stake I could no longer dis-
approve of the action of Marshal Davout whatever it
might cost me.'

If the intervention of Russia had been that of a friendly
country I would have given full satisfaction. For, after
all, what did it matter if a few English goods came in
through Oldenburg? It was easy for me to confiscate
them on leaving the little State, and did I not permit the
introduction of English wares into France under licence
myself?

2 . I have proved to the Czar Alexander my detestation
of going to war with him, and the sincerity of the brotherly
promises that we swore to each other in Erfurt, by sending
liim Count Narbonne, my adjutant, to offer him anew
the hand of friendship, and to propose to him a meeting
which might have restored the good understanding
between us. It is not my mistake that he would receive
neither Lauriston nor Narbonne. Still less was it my
fault that Adjutant Balaschow’s mission did not bring
peace as its result. It is false to affirm that I said to him^:

“ It is too late, for the gauntlet has been thrown down.”
On the contrary, I proposed to declare Vilna neutral, in
order to treat of peace there personally with Czar Alex-
ander. I sent word to him that the moment that he
assured me of his willingness to adhere .again to the
Continental System there would not be any further
questions of importance to negotiate, and that my army
would withdraw behind the Niemen, in case the Russian
Army retired behind the Dwina. Could I do more .

After I had crossed the Niemen at the head of 400,000
men I said, it is true, to myself : “ It is too late, the

FROM SUMMIT TO FALL, 1812-1815 195

gauntlet has been thrown down and picked up.” But
from the moment that I had received and listened to the
Czar’s ambassador, peace would Iiavc been possible. It
would have been restored witliout the shedding of a drop
of blood, if the Czar Alexander had openly washed it, or
rather if he had set his will against the wishes of liis boyars
(nobles) who wanted war at any price, as they were ruined
by the Continental Barrier, ana wanted at any cost to
sell their tallow, hemp, and copper in England.

Let it be said once more ; it was against my will that
I undertook war with Russia. I knew better than anyone
that Spain was a gnawing cancer that must be hc.alcd
before one could enter upon such a terrible war in which the
first battle would be fought at a distance of 500 leagues
from my frontier.

I could not count on help from Poland in the first
months of the year 1812. Czar Alexander knows that as
well as I do, and cannot take me for such an idiot as to
reckon seriously on the assistance of a Polish army.
Undoubtedly I counted on the sincerity of the Emperor
Francis. I have always looked upon family bonds as
sacred, and even to-d.iy 1 don’t believe that one may
break them without dishonouring them, or that one may
attack what is most sacred to mankind. But I only
reckoned on Prussia ns long as I remained the victor, and
certainly I was not so foolish as to believe, like Charles XII,
that I could conquer Russia rvitliout gigantic efforts. I
knew tlie worth of the Russian Army, for the war of 1 807
had proved it to me, and besides I had nothing to expect
from the influence of French idc<a5 on tlicse half-civiuscd
people. I could not forget that when I spoke to the
Polish serfs about liberty they answered me : “ Certainly
we should like to have it very much, but who tvill feed,
clothe, and house us ? ”

I like the Polish soldier, but I love France above all,
and I would never have waged war with Russia simply
in order to serve the interests of the Polish nobility.
Undoubtedly Poland is the natural frontier between the
west of Europe and Russia. The restoration of the
Kingdom of Poland together with Galicia and the Baltic
coast was, according to my idea, the work of my diplomacy.
Czar Alexander may remember that we negotiated on the

196 MEMOIRS OF NAPOLEON I

^bject at Erfurtj and that he offered to exchange his
Polish Provinces for Constantinople, which city presented
enormous difficulties in 1811, but scarcely, does so to-day.

I should have been a fool if I had begun the war of 1812
to obtain something which I could easily have got by
friendly negotiations. I repeat that I did not want the
war, and I believe that I have proved it.

3. I really wished to marry the Russian Grand Duchess.
If Count Balmain speaks the truth, the Czar Alexander
and myself were disgracefully deceived in the whole affair.
It is true that I consulted my Privy Council, but only to
guard my interests, for the refusal of the Dowager Empress
was already being discussed in the diplomatic salons. It
was only after I had given up all hope of the Russian
marriage that I decided on the Archduchess Maria Louisa.

ON THE RUSSIAN CAMPAIGN — THE BATTLE OE THE MOSKWA,

7TH SEPTEMBER, l8l2

People will never learn the real truth about the Russian
Campaign, for the Russians do not write, or they write
without any respect for the truth, and the French are so
given to violent emotion that they dishonour and diminish
their own fame. Perhaps some day a German or an
Englishman will be found who fought in the Russian
armies, and who will describe the campaign. People
will then be convinced that it was the best, the inost
skilful, the most cleverly led, and the most methodical
of all the campaigns that I have commanded.

The Battle of the Moskwa (Borodino) is the most
famous, the most difficult, the most glorious act of war on
the part of the Gauls which ancient or modern history
has seen. The Russians are very brave soldiers. ^ Their
whole army was united. They had 170,000 men, includ-
ing the Moscow troops. Kutusow had taken up a very
good position and occupied it with skill. He had every

advantage on his side. . . r

During the battle I was able to turn the right wing 01
the Russian positions, yet I must admit that I did not
think them so strong as they really were ; and, besides,

I needed a battle. I wanted to seize the opportunity ot
preventing Kutusow from' enticing me farther into the

FROM SUMMIT TO FALL, 1812-1815 197

interior witliout a great battle to decide the peace. It has
been objected that if I had reached Moscow without my
army having sufTcred very much, I might easily have
concluded peace.

In the interests of my fame I ought to have died on that
day of battle. If a bullet had JciTled me at the Moskwa
I should have been crowned with an incomparable
wTcatli of fame. The force of imagination would have
been such that it would not have been in a position to set
limits to my career 1

Never was a battle more longed for than that of the
Moskwa. It was demanded by the Russian Court, who saw
with horror tlic devastation and destruction of their pro-
vinces by tbc nobles and the army, wc.akcncd and discour-
aged by the continual retreat. Barclay dc Tolly wanted to
accept battle on tlic Dwina, but he could not be over-
taken in time by Bagration. After their union he marched
on Smolensk. In consequence of a counter-march by me
he could not but sec that the town was being taken before
his eyes, and he withdrew further back to Dorogobusch
wiicre ho again wished to fight a battle. His determination
failed him, however, and he retreated to Wiasma where
he announced that he would at last accept battle. But
this time also he could not make up his mind to it, and
the impatient Court replaced him by Kutusow. This
general did the wisest thing he could do by giving battle
on the excellent position by the Moskwa. He had chosen
well. He might have won the battle, for the chances
were at least equal. If he had won, he would have been
declared as the saviour of the Empire. He lost it, and
Moscow ceased to exist.

Without doubt, Moscow was not wortli a battle ! The
Russians lost the Battle of the Moskwa, and Moscow fell ;
but if they had won it, Moscow would have been saved.

1 00,000 men, women, and children would not have perished
miserably in the forests ; Russia would not have seen this
magnificent capital, the work of centuries, destroyed
within a week ; she would not have lost the many
thousands of millions that lie buried beneath its ruins.
The original cause of all the defeats of the campaign was
the burning of Moscow. Had it not been for this event,
new to history, the Czar would have been forced into

igS MEMOIRS OF NAPOLEON I

peace. Tlie results of the Battle of the Moskwa were
immense !

If Moscow liad not been given to the flames I would
have shown the w^orld the strange spectacle of an army
peacefully wintering in the midst of a hostile population
pressing round them on all sides— an icebound ship 1 In
France nothing would have been heard of me for a long
time, but I am sure that the people in France would have
behaved calmly and sensibly, Lord High Chancellor
Cambacer^s would have continued, as always, to transact
affairs in my name, and everything would have taken its
course exactly as if I had been present in Paris myself.
The -^vinler in Russia would, it is true, have been a heavy
burden to eveiybody, but in spring they would all have
weakened up, and it is knovm well enough that the French
arc brisker and more skilful than any other nation.

As soon as the fine weather had come I should have
marched straight on the enemy. I should have beaten
them and been master of their country. But Alexander
would never have let things go so far. He would have
put up with all the conditions that I would have made to
liim, and then France "would at last have had free play.
And in fact, very little would have been needed ! I had
come for the purpose of fighting armed men, but not the
raging elements ! I have destroyed armies, but. flames,
ice, numbness, death — these I could not conquer. Fate
was stronger than I ! And yet what a misfortune for
France, and for Europe I

The peace to be concluded at Moscow would have
ended my "war undertakings. It would have been the end
of the chances of fortune for the great cause, and the
beginning of peace and security. A new horizon and
new labours would have arisen, and would have been
carried out by the prosperity and w^ell-being of every one ;
there remained only one question, the organisation.

MOSCOW OR ST. ..PETERSBURG

The burning of Moscow has without doubt retarded
the progress of Russia. For the country it was the loss of
a milliard. If Czar Alexander had been with his arny,
he would not have allowed his former capital to be
destroyed, but would have preferred to conclude^ peace.

FROM SUMMIT TO FALL, 1812-1815 199

He has even declared that he would have done so if I had
marched on St. Petenburg. There thc>’ were not at all
angry at the fate of the other city. I should have done
better perhaps Iw occupying St. Petenburg, as it is the
centre of the Government and of trade. However,
Moscow is the real capital of the Russian Empire, as it is
situated nearer the centre of the country than St. Peter:-
burg, which is 200 leagues distant from Moscow. Our
march on Moscow has, all the same, done much harm to
Russia. Wiasma and Smolensk were fine towns and
possessed many factories which arc now burnt down.

Kutusow would have done better by taking up a
posidon on my right flank, by not burning Moscow, and
not risking a battle ; but after the battle the operations
were no longer dangerous.

ON THE RETREAT

During the Russian Campaign the stores of the first line
were at Smolensk, tliose of the second in Minsk and
Vilna, a week’s march distant from Smolensk, those of the
third in Kotmo, Grodno, and Bial>’stock, those of the
fourth line in Elbing, Marienwerder, Thom, Plock,
Modlin, and ^Varsaw, those of the fifth line in Danzig,
Bromberg, and Posen, those of the sixth line in Stettin,
Kdstrin, and Glogau. Of 400,000 men that crossed the
Niemen, 250,000 remained in reserve between that river
and the Dnieper, 150,000 advanced on Smolensk, and
then on Moscow. Of these 150,000 men, 30,000 remained
between Smolensk and Mojaisk, stationed at intervals.

The retreat had, of course, to be made via Poland.
Not one of the generals pointed out to me the necessity of
halting at the Bcrcsina. All believed that the taking of
Moscow would end tlic war. As far as Smolensk my
operations were carried out in a friendly country, as if in
France ; the people, the authorities, all were on my side.
I could raise soldiers here, and requisition horses and
provisions.

On my march to Moscow I never had enemies in my
rear. During the twenty days that I passed in that
capital not a courier nor an artillery transport was taken,
nor svas a single blockhouse (and there were some at all
the stages) attacked. More than 700 artillery and other

200 MEMOIRS OF NAPOLEON I

military waggons arrived without accident. If Moscow
had not been burnt the Czar would have been forced to
make peace. If it had not been for the burning of Moscow,
and if the winter had not set in a fortnight earlier than
usual, the army would have returned to Smolensk \vithout
loss, where it would have had nothing to fear from the
Russian armies defeated at the Moskwa and at Malo-
Jaroslawctz, for these troops were in the utmost need of
rest.

We knew vciy well that it is ver>^ cold in December and
January, but by comparing the weather for the previous
t^venty years, wc had gained the certainty that the ther-
mometer never sank below six degrees of frost in November.
It took the army only three days to prepare for an orderly
retreat ; but during these three days it lost over 30,000
horses. The early frost injured both armies equally.
This occurrence caused some to reproach me for having
remained four days too long in Moscow. But I was
compelled to do so from political reasons, and thought
besides that I could reach Poland in good time. As is
well known the autumns in the north are very long.

When the army left Moscow it took provisions -udth it
for twenty days ; it was more than sufficient to last as far
as Smolensk, where it would have found enough stores of
food to reach Minsk or Vilna, if I had thought it advisable
to leave Smolensk. The early frost had killed all the
baggage-horses, and most of those of the artillery and
cavalry. All these branches of the army were completely
disorganised, so that it was no longer an army at all, and
it was not possible to take up a position before reaching
Vilna. The corps of the Prince of Schwarzenberg, and of
General Reynier, which were stationed on the Vistula,
instead of supporting themselves on Minsk, as they ought
to have done, retreated to Warsaw and abandoned the
army. If they had withdrawn to Minsk, they could have
united with Dombrowski’s division which was not able to
defend Borissow alone. Owing to this. Admiral
Tschitschagow succeeded in seizing the town.^ Besides, it
was not at all his intention to occupy a position on the
Beresina, he wanted rather to turn towards the Dwina in
order to cover St. Petersburg. In consequence of this
unexpected occurrence the Duke of Reggio (Oudinot),

FROM SUMMIT TO FALL. :8i2-i8i5 201

met the admiral, defeated him, and liurled him back on
to the left bank of the Beresina. Tschitscliagow was
again beaten after llic crossing of the Beresina. Doumerc’s
Cuirassiers took 5000 of his men prisoners in a single attack.

When we were witliin two days’ marcli of Vilna, as all
difticultics had been overcome, I considered it necessary
to go to Paris, for it was only from there that 1 could keep
Prussia and Austria in check. If I had delayed the
journey my way back would perhaps have been blocked.
I left the army to the King of Naples (Murat), and tlic
Prince of Neucliktel (Bcrthicr). The Guard was still up
to strength, and the army still consisted of 80,000 lighting
men ; the cor^s of Schwarzenberg, Rcymicr, Macdonald,
and the Prussians, were not included in this number.
Flour, biscuit, wine, meat, dried vegetables, and fodder
were to be found in plenty in Vilna, where there were
likesvise abundant stores of clothing and ammunition. If
I had remained with the army it would never have
retreated further than Vilna. One reserve-corps was in
Wanaw, another in Konigsberg ; yet they let themselves
be intimidated by a few Cossaclte, and evacuated Vilna in
the night. It is only from this day that the great losses of
the army are to be reckoned. This combination of
circumstances, necessitating my presence both with the
army and in Paris, was a great misfortune. Nothing was,
or could be, less foreseen than this conduct of my
subordinate leaders in Vilna.

A SURVEY or THE EVENTS OP THE YEAR iSlg

The victories of Lfilzen and Wurzen on the 2nd and
2and of May, 1813, had restored the honour of the French
Army. The King of Saxony was led back triumphantly
to his capital, the enemy was driven out of Hamburg.
One corps of the Grand Army was before the gates of
Berlin, and my head-quarters were in Breslau. There
was no means of exit for the discouraged Russian and
Prussian armies except by a retreat across the Vistula,
when Austria took a hand in the game and advised France
to sign a truce. I returned to Dresden, the Emperor of
Austria left Vienna and repaired to Bohemia, while the
Rulers of Russia and Prussia removed their head-quarters
to Schweidnitz. The negotiations began. Count ^

202 MEMOIRS OF NAPOLEON I

proposed a congress in Prague. It was accepted.
But It was aU only a pretence. The Viennese Court had
already come to an understanding %\dth Russia and
Prussia. They wanted to declare themselves in May
when the unexpected successes of the French Army com-
pelled^ Austria to show a litde more prudence in her
behaviour. In spite of every effort, the Austrian Army
was still too ^veak in numbers, badly organised, and
not in a position to enter tlie war. Count MettemicH
demanded the Illyrian Provinces, the half of the Kingdom
of Italy, that is to say Venice, as far as the Mincio ; further
Poland, tlie renunciation of the Rhinebund, and the
32nd Military Division (Hamburg, etc.). These extra-
ordinar>' conditions were only made to be refused. The
Duke of Vicenza (Caulaincourt) went to the Congress of
Prague. The choice of the Russian delegate, Baron
Anstett, showed that it was not peace that Russia was
striving for, but that she only ^rished to gain time, so that
Austria might complete her military preparations. In
fact the e\nl omen ^^ith regard to the Russian delegate
was confirmed. They refused to enter into any negotia-
tions. Austria, which was ostensibly the mediator,
declared her adhesion to the Coalition, as her army was
ready, ■without ha\ing asked for a single meeting, or
ha\ing signed a single protocol. This system of falseness,
ill-Vvill, and constant contradiction beUveen words and
deeds was used at that period by the Court of Vienna.
The war began again. The brilliant victory which I won
at Dresden on the 27th of August over the army led by
the three Rulers ■was balanced by the defeat of Macdonald
in Silesia, and by the loss of Vandamme in Bohemia.
At the same time the French Army retained the super-
iority, supported as it ■was by the fortified tovms of
Torgau, Wittenberg, and - Magdeburg. Denmark had
concluded an offensive and defensive treaty "srith me, and
its contingent of troops strengthened the French Army in
Hambrug.

In October I left Dresden for Magdeburg where I took
up a position on the left bank of the Elbe in order to
deceive the enemy. My plan was to cross back over the
Elbe at Wittenberg and march on Berlin. Various
army-corps had already reached Wittenberg, and the

FROM SUMMIT TO FALL, 1812-1815 203

enemy’s bridges at Desau bad been detroyed ; when a
letter from the King of WQrttemberg informed me tliat
the King of Bavaria had suddenly changed sides, and
that, without any declaration of war or previous announce-
ment, tlic Austrian and Bavarian troops on the Inn had
united into an army of 80,000 men under the command
of General Wrede, and were marching towards the
Rliinc, and that Maycncc would shortly be besieged by
100,000 men.

At tliis unexpected news I thought it necessary to alter
the plan of campaign svhich I had been thinking out for
two montlis, and for the sake of which I had been making
use of the fonrcsscs and stores. \S’itlt the protection
afforded by the fortresses and magazines of Torgau,
Wittenberg, Magdeburg, and Hamburg, I intended to
move the scat of war to the district between the Elbe and
Oder (the French Army also held on this bank the fortified
towns of Glogau, Kflstrin, and Stettin), and according to
circumstances seize die Vistula fortresses of Thom and
Modlin.

I had reason to hope from this extensive plan that the
result would be the break-down of the Coalition, and that
the German princes would be held to their loyalty and
alliance srith France. I hoped that Bavaria would wait
another fortnight before making a decision, and I still
believed at the time that it had not altered its views.

The armies met in violent collision on the battlefield of
Lcipsic on the i6th of October. The French Army
remained victorious. The Austrians were beaten and
driven out of all their positions. One of the enemy
corps-commanden. Count Mcrfcldt, was taken prisoner.
On the 1 8th the French were again victorious, in spite of
the defeat sustained by the Duke of Ragusa (Marraont).
Thereupon the whole Saxon Army, with sixty guns,
which was occupying one of the most important positions
in the array, went over to the enemy and turned their
guns on the French line. An act of treachery of this
unheard-of kind was bound to bring about the ruin of the
French Army, and give thehonoun of the day to the Allies.
I hurried up tvith the half of my Guard, beat back the
Saxons and Swedes and drove them right out of their
positions.

204 * MEMOIRS OF NAPOLEON I

The day of the i8th was nearly over. The enemy
made a backward movement along the whole line and
bivouacked behind the battlefield, which the French
held. In the night the French Army made a move in
order to place itself behind the Elster and get into direct
communication wth Erfurt, where it expected supplies of
ammunition, of which it was badly in need. On the days
from the i6th to the i8th it had fired more than 150,000
cannon-shots.

The treachery of various corps of the Rhinebund,
which had been infected by the example set by the Saxons
the day before, the accident at the bridge of Leipsic,
which was blown up too soon, all these fatal events caused
the army, though still victorious, to sustain immense losses.

The French Army crossed the Saale at Weissenfels,
wLere it \vas to reorganise and "wait for supplies of
ammunition from Erfurt, w^hich was sufficiently provided,
when nei;vs was received of the Austro-Bavarian Army.
The latter had been making forced marches and had
arrived at the Main. We had, therefore, to march against
it. On the 30th October the enemy collided with the
French Army and fought a regular batde with it before
Hanau, on the road to Frankfurt. Although the Austro-
Bavarian Army "was strong and held good positions,^ it
was completely routed and driven out of Hanau, wdiich
Count Bertrand then occupied. General Wrede was
wounded in the action. The French Army continued its
retreat over the Rhine, crossing this river on the 2nd of
November.

Negotiations were now begun. Baron Saint-Aignan
had conversations with Count Metternich in Frankfurt,
also wdth Neselrode and Lord Aberdeen, and afterwards
came to Paris %vith proposals for peace, which were based
on the following : The Emperor gives up the Protectorate
over the Rhinebund, Poland, and the Elbe departments,
yet France is to remain with the frontiers of the Alps and
the Rhine, HoUand included. As to the frontier in Italy
which separated France from the Austrian States, an
understanding had still to be arrived at. t’ 7 -r ^

I examined these proposals, but the Congress of Frankiurt
was only a trick like that of Prague. They seized tms
excuse because they hoped that France would rerase tne

FROM SUMMIT TO FALL, 1815-1815 505

nroposab. TIic)’ «-antcd iiinv maicrinl for n mnnifato in
order to work up public opinion, for at tlic moment tiiat
these conciliator)' proposals were being made, the allied
army was Wolatine Swiss ntulraliiy and marchine into
Suit7crUnd. Finally the Allies sliosscd their hand, and
indicated ChhulIon-stir-Scinc in nurgundy ns the place
for negotiations.

The battles of Champ.itibert, Monimirail, and Mon-
tcreau destrti)-ed the armies of nitlrlicr and Wittgen-
stein. In the meantime no negotiations sscrc going on at
Chatillon, but.thc Allied I’osvrrs i’lunl an ultimatum the
conditiom ofsshiclt were as folloss-s : 1. Tlic ceition of all
Itak, Belgium, Holland, and the Rhine Ckanrcdcraiion.
2. France to be obliges! to keep svithin the frontiers which
it bad in 179J. I fejectesi this ultimatum. I agreed to
the surrender cf Holland and Italy, hut tefuted to accept
the Alps and the Rhine as frontiers, anti I likesuic rcfusctl
to concede Belgium, eepeeially Antwerp). In ipitr of the
victories of fkrat and Saint-Dirirr Ircarhrty of n cry kind
came to the aid of the Allirr.

Up to this time the)' had shossri no inclination of any
kmd to interfere in lli'- domriltc affairs of Franec. Tins
is confirmed bs- the ultimatum of Ciifiiillon whicb was
signed by England, Ainlria, Kut'ia, and I'ru'iia, svhen
luddmly a fciv retumed on fhr appearance of the

Austrian, Ruoian, atjd I’rutiian anniei, m which they
terved, ikoughi that the moment had come for the
fi'j.i.. 7 !ent<>f{dt:rwi<.tira. Some put on fhe whifccod..rde,
others the Cross of S.ainl-Ivouii. Tfieir action was dis-
sppm-.'cd by the Allietl Rulen. Even Wcllmglon did
not appro-, e of iho'c who irittl to set up the tokens of the
^rbons in Bordeaux, though he secretly favoured

PrlUe' •'ipnots hy which the Prussians turned from the
®' “nte, and allied their cotmiry ssiih R“”''
& the Treaty of Kali.ch. in the comp.^«
“Pcdally. in all the diplomatic trajsuo,
public and pnratc. un to the Treatv of

in
of Iho

2o6

MEMOIRS OF NAPOLEON I

MY NEGOTIATIONS WITH METTERNICH

It has been falsely stated that I did not want to sign
peace in Dresden. I have always wished for peace after
a victory, but never after a defeat. I have always thought
that, because I believe that it is much easier for a nation
to find men again than the honour lost, if it concludes a
shameful peace after suffering defeats.

I offered general peace when my victories took me to
the Czar’s palace. But when defeats, as immense as they
were unexpected, caused the destruction of my army by
snow and ice, I did not speak a word of peace. I turned
rather to the patriotism of the French, and only after
winning the battles of Liitzen and Bautzen, and leading
back the King of Saxony in triumph to his capital, when
one of my army-corps threatened Berlin, and the Russian
and Prussian armies had been beaten in three battles and
had been thrown back to the left bank of the Oder, did
I answer the peace overtures which had been made to me
from Vienna. At that time Herr Metternich said to the
French ambassador ; “Tell me openly what you want to
do, and place us in the position of a good ally towards you
and an independent Power towards the others. BeHeve
me that we feel just like allies and that we can do you real
service.”

These negotiations led me to agree to an armistice,
which turned out to be very fatal for me. Had I con-
tinued the pursuit of the enemy I would have Rotated
peace on the banks of the Niemen, for the Russian and
Prussian armies were so disorganised that they gave up
all the positions that would have been so favourable to
their union, and it is very probable that not even the
Vistula would have been a sufficient obstacle for the
holding up of my victorious army.

Austria strove to hide her ambitious scheme of revenge
against France, but unexpected circumstances enlightened
me as to her treason. One of the couriers of Count
Stakkelberg, the Russian ambassador in Vienna, was
taken prisoner by the Hussars of my vanguard. His
papers proved that Austria was bargaining over the price
of her defection. In a moment of forgetfulness Prince
Schwarzenberg once said in Paris : “ The marriage

FROM SUMMIT TO FALL, 1812-1815 207

contrived by an artful policy docs not bind us to anything
in tlic future.” But I would not believe tliat the Emperor
Francis was insincere. How could 1 have tltought any-
thing else when he WTote to me : “ The mediator is Your
Majesty’s friend, and it is a question of placing your
dynasty on an unshakable (bundation, as its existence is
closely connected with my own." And I complained to
him that he was being so shamefully betrayed by his
confidential man (Mcttemichl.

When, at tltc end of June, Herr Mcttcmich brought
me another letter from the Emperor Francis, I said :
“ Tlicrc you are at last, Mcttcmich. You arc very
welcome. But why do you come so late, if you frankly
want peace? Wiy have you not openly and at once
admitted the change in your policy ? So you don’t wish
any longer to guarantee the integrity of the French
Empire ? Well, so be it 1 But you ought to have ventured
to speak freely to me about it on my return from Russia.
Perhaps I would have changed my plans then. Perhaps
I would not have undertaken the spring campaign of 1813.
We could have come to an understanding. I have always
recognised the force of circumstances.”

“Perhaps you reckoned on a somewhat less-rapid
course of events, or on less success to my arms. But why
speak of mediation, and persuade me to agree to a truce
at a time when you arc already speaking of an alliance
with my enemies ? Had it not been for your intervention
I should have thrown them back over the Vistula, and
peace would have been signed. To-day I know no other
result of your mediation and the armistice tlian the
decisions of Rcichcnbach by svhich England engages to
pay Russia and Prussia fitly millions to declare svar on me.
They tell me also about a similar treaty with a third
Power. You must know more about it than I, as Count
Stadion was present at the conferences. Admit to me,
Mcttcmich, that Austria has only taken on the rfile of
mediator, because she wanted to accomplish her ambitious
plans of retaliation. The interference of Austria is not
impartial, it is hostile. The victory of LOtzen has made
your Court feel the need of increasing your army without
declaring for either side. You wanted to gain time.
You have treacherously offered me your mediation, and

2 o 8 memoirs of napoleon I

you have pressed a truce on me. To-day when you have
succeeded in getting together 200,000 men, who are
ready to take the field in the shelter of the Bohemian
Mountains, you come to dictate your terms to me 1 ”

“ If your master is a mediator, why does he not hold
the scales of the balance even ? If he is not, why does he
not range himself openly on the side of my enemies ?
That would be the part of a great ruler ! But I have
recognised your aim : you want to feel your way. You
only come to find out whether you will get greater advan-
tages by demanding ransom from me without fighting, or
whether you should fight me in order to get back all or
only some of the provinces which you have lost.

“ Say openly what you^ want, Metternich ? I know
very well how I stand, I know what I can hope for from
a victory, but I am tired of war. I wish for peace, and
I do not conceal the fact that I need your neutrality to
obtain it without fighting. I have offered you Illyria if
you remain neutral ; do you want more : speak ! ”

Herr Metternich admitted that, as matters then stood,
Austria could not remain neutral, and that she must of
necessity be either for me or against me. “ Well, I agree,”
I remarked. “Tell me what Austria asks for, in return
for openly joining me.” And at these words I led him
to a table on which maps were spread out. His self-
satisfaction made him blmd. He thought he had con-
quered me, and considered me unable to dictate peace
without the co-operation of Austria. He indicated on the
map what he regarded as the price of peace. — “ What,”

I said, “ you want not only Illyria, but the half of Italy
and the Confederation of the Rhine ! So that is your
moderation, and your respect for the rights of independent
States !

“ When you ask for yourselves Italy, the Protectorate of
the Rhine Confederation, and Switzerland ; for Russia,
Poland ; for Sweden, Norway ; for Prussia, Saxony ; for
England, Holland, and Belgium ; that means in a word
pulling the French Empire to pieces. And you thmk
that, in order to reach such a goal, all that is needed is a
threat from Austria.

“According to your wash, you would like to see the
fall of the fortified towns of Danzig, Hamburg, Magde-

FROM SUMMIT TO FALL, 1812-1815 209

burg, Wcsel, Maycncc, Antwerp, Alessandria, Mantua,
in fact all the strongholds in Europe, to which I obtained
tlic keys only through my victories ? You wish me, then,
subject to your policy, to clear out of Germany, the half of
which I still occupy, and to lead back my victorious
legions across the Rltinc svith arms revened, so as to
surrender m)-self like a fool to my enemies 1 And all that
while my victorious army is standing before the gates of
Berlin and Breslau, and I at the head of 200,000 men,
wliilc Austria flatten hcnclf, without even drawing the
sword from the scabbard, Uiat she can induce me to
accept such conditions ! And it is from my father-in-law
that such an insult comes, for it is he that sent you I
ItTiat a position to put me in towards the French people !
He deceives himself mightily if he thinks tliat my throne,
thus mutilated,' svill be a place of refuge for his daughter
and his grandson in the midst of tlie French. If I were
tsilling to sign such a peace as that my Empire would
break dorni more guickly than it rose. One can stop
running when one is going up hill but not when going
down.

“Taken on the whole the conditions which Austria
demands for her alliance, might be acceptable to anybody
but myself. Louis XIV accepted conditions equally
oppressive.

“Your Cabinet may therefore water-down their con-
ditions in proportion to their oivn interests. They must
understand that I am necessary to the monarchical
principle, that it is I who have restored tlie brilliancy of
monarchy, that I have rescued it from the deadly attack
of republicanism, and that my complete overthrow
would mean handing over Europe to the Russian yoke.
Then I would have no doubts about peace."

Mettcmich understood that he had gone too far. He
assured me of his warm desire for peace, and admitted
the necessity of leaving the French Empire strong enough
to act as a balance against the power of Russia.

All difficulties seemed to have been overcome. Herr
Mettcmich gave way on all points when he saw that the
cession of Illyria was not my last word. I thought I had
brought him over to my point of view, when I let myself
be so carried away as to say to him : V ’ >^given you

210 MEMOIRS OF NAPOLEON I

twenty millions : do you want another twenty millions.
I will give them to you. But how much has England
offered you ? ”

If he had been struck by a flash of lightning the effect
■would not have been greater. Herr Mctternich’s deadly
pallor showed me the immensity of my mistake. I had
made an implacable enemy.

These mistakes arc a part of my easily excited tempera-
nicnt. There arc certain chords in me which begin to
vibrate ^yith the speed of lightning, -when, unfortunately,
they collide with my conceptions of honour or patriotism.
The same thing occurred when I fell out ■with that English
ambassador who dared to remind me of the Battle of
Agincourt.

, In Dresden it was different. This was unpardonable.
My righteous anger ■was no excuse. It was an ugly feeling
that made me say to Herr Mctternich : “ How much are
the English giving you, then ? ” That means taking a
pleasure in humiliating a person. One should never
humiliate anyone \vhom one -wishes to win over.

Of course I did not want to conclude the kind of peace
which my enemies tried to dictate to me. Were they
more peacefully disposed than myself? Did they not also,
for their part, refuse the peace which I offered to them ?
What my enemies called “ World peace ” was my des-
truction, but what I called peace was only the disarming
of my enemies ; was I not, accordingly, more moderate
than they ? The accusation of being fond of war is
absurd in reference to me ; but sooner or later public
opinion will do me justice.

It will be recognised that I had more interest than
anyone else in making peace. I knew that perfectly well,
and if I did not do it, nevertheless, it is because I could
not. . . . One must not judge by the refusal which I
gave to the first demands of my enemies. Is it not well
known that every Power which enters into negotiations
with another, at first asks for everything which it thi^s
that it can obtain ? That is in the nature of things. ^ But
the negotiations finally reach an end, either the^ victor
gains the upper hand, or the defeated party resists, or
both parties are equal. I admit that I thought the posi-

FROM SUMMIT TO FAU,. 1812-1815 211

tion in which tlic amnesty found us, would be favourable
for treating on equai terms. Wc were equally balanced
in our victories nnd our defeitVs. I vs'i's ntilc to concede sv
great dcai 'VN-iUtout needing to be aCraid of weakening
myself too much for the general peace. Tliai* howcN'cr,
was not the ease with a peace which is only conunenttd.
In tliis ease it is only an armistice, during which England
will not fail to conclude new alliances. As up to now
noUiing was settled, I bad to foresee further attacks and
tty to retain as much power as possible. I wanted to
concede the least possible that was necessary, but nothing
unnecessary. Tliat was my whole policy-.

A KAWiow tscApr. most nrjvni
During the fight at Brienne I remembered that about
twenty or twenty-five Uhlans, hut no Cossacla, were
turning one of the wings of my army, in order to try and
fall on a portion of my artiucry. ’llie day svas nc.atly
over, and die horizon w,as beginning to get obrcurctf.
Suddenly, in some incomptchensiWe manner, ilicy found
thcntscives face to face with me and my General St.nff.
When they saw us the>' svttc quite confused and did not
know what to do. Tlicy did not luiow, however, who I
was, and I did not recognise them for a while. 1 thought
they formed part of our troops. But Coulaincourt recog-
nised diem and drew my attention to the fact that wc were
in the middlc of die enemy. At the same moment the
Uhlans, who in their fright did not know what to do,
began to Bee seeking flight in all directions. Thereupon
my General Staff fired on them. One of the enemy Lancers
galloped so near to me without knowing me, that he
struck my knee violently with his hand. He was liolding
his lance ready to charge, but it was witli llic other hand
that he touched me. At first I thought it was one of rny
General Staff who had knocked agaitut me so roughly, but
on turning round I saw that it was an enemy. I laid my
hand on the pistol-pocket of my saddle, to mke out a
pistol v/ilh whicli to shoot him ; hut he liad already
disappeared. I don’t know whether he v/as killed, or
whether he exaped. On that day I drev/ itiy r,v/oril, n
thing of rare occurrerie^,, for 1 v«m battles with my bend
and not hy the strcnglli of rny arm, ,

212

MEMOIRS OF NAPOLEON I

FRANCE WAS NOT YET LOST

I was firmly convinced that Schwarzenberg would not
venture to engage in a battle with me and hoped by
incessant pursuit to wear out the half of his army. I had
also taken from him on his retreat a stately array of
cannon and a lot of baggage. When it was reported to
me that the enemy had crossed the Aube at Vitry I saw
myself obliged to halt. I refused to believe in this cross-
ing, till General Gerard assured me that he had seen
20,000 infantry. Rejoicing over this information I
returned to Saint-Dizier and there attacked Wintzinger-
ode’s cavalry in the belief that I had to do with
Schwarzenberg’s army.

After having driven this mass of horsemen in front of
me for a w^hole day like a flock of sheep, and ha\ing made
1500 to 2000 prisoners, and taken a few^ guns, I called a
halt, for, to my astonishment, I could see nothing what-
ever of the main army. I at once had enquiries made,
from w'hich it appeared that the enemy had marched
back in the direction of Troyes. I rode there at once and
the fact was established that the armies of Bliicher and
Schwarzenberg had marched on Paris three days before.
One account of this loss of time I ordered my troops to
advance by forced marches, and galloped myself with my
escort day and night on the road to Paris.

Never were my faithful troops and myself more joyful
and confident than at that moment, for we were firmly
convinced that the w^hole w^orking population of Paris
would take up arms for me. And w^hat could the Alhes
have done against such a force ? The National Guard
needed only to barricade the streets, so that the enemy
could not possibly force his "way in, before I arrived in
person to the relief of my capital. Towards eight o’clock
in the morning, a few leagues from Paris, I came across
a crowd of sol(fiers marching alone, who were as surprised
to see me as I was to see them. “ What is the meaning of
this ? ” I said to them. They stared at me and were
speechless for a moment. At last they pulled themsely^
together and called out : “ Why, that’s the Ernperor .
and explained that they had been fleeing to Pans.

At the time I still believed in my star. My army was

FROM SUMMIT TO FALL, 1812-1815 213

burning rvilh zeal to fall on the enemy and drive him
from the capital. The condition of the Allied Army was
about the same as that of my own, and I knew also that
Schwarzenberg would never risk a pitched battle with
Paris in his rear, but svould take up a protected position
on the other side of the capital.

I intended to inveigle the enemy into fights at various
points, lasting two or three houn, and then to throw
myself on one point at the head of thirty battalions of the
Guard. Then nothing could stand against me. And
even if I had not been able, svith the small number of my
troops, to gain a victory, I would certainly have succeeded
in inflicting serious losses on the cnciw, and have forced
him to evacuate Paris and district. The decisions to be
made later depended entirely on various circumstances.
But who could have suspected that the Senate, faced by
only 20,000 enemies, would dishonour itself by an act of
cowardice unexampled in history, and that a man
(Marmont) who owed everything to me, had been my
adjutant, and for twenty years had been attached to my
person, would betray me? It was, nevertheless, purely
and simply a small fraction of the population which was
ruling Paris, supported by forcim bayonets ; all the rest
of the population were for me. But even if the army were
minded as one man to fight on for me and my throne, the
consequences would have been a war lasting for years,
which, with my small number of troops, would certainly
have cost the lives of many of my faithful followers. I
svas, therefore, resolved to sacrifice my own rights and
claims.

Neither for the sake of my crotvn, nor for the sake of
my ambitious plans, svhich no longer lay within the range
of possibility, would I have continued the war of 1814,
but for the fame of France alone, which I wanted to make
the firet Power in the svorld. But now it was all over ;

I have abdicated and am like a dead man.

For the rest, the unfavourable opinion svhich I had of
Schtvarzenberg’s army was only too well justified. The
soldiers had no confidence either in themselves or in their
allies. Every one thought that he was doing too much,
and his allies too little. My enemies were already half
beaten before they met me. If Marmont was afraid of

214 MEMOIRS OF NAPOLEON I

his life, I have nothing but a smile of contempt for him.
Was there ever anytl^g so childish as this surrender?
The marshal recognised no interest but that of his own
person, and for that reason only he became a deserter and
handed me and his comrades over to the enemy. It was
just his corps which covered my front. The night before
Marmont had said to me word for word : “ Sire, I
guarantee m^^ army-corps ! ” When the latter saw
themselves being led backwards into the midst of the
Allies, both officers and men became very excited. In
this way 8000 infantry, 3000 cavalry, and 60 guns were
handed over to the enemy. This is plain fact. There arc
no words to describe Marmont’s conduct before Paris.
Who has ever experienced anything so unheard-of?
200 guns on the Champ de Mars, and only 60 cannon on
Montmartre !

JOSEPH REFUSES TO FIGHT IN PARIS

If every one had done his duty, if aU the Ministers, if
Joseph himself, instead of fleeing with the Empress behind
the Loire, had mounted his horse and shown courage and
determination to the inhabitants of Paris, they would
have won the day, have given me time to hasten up, and
France would have been saved. The enemy, with
200,000 men would never have risked a battle on the left
bank of the Seine, for in case of defeat he would have had
an immense city of 800,000 inhabitants in his rear ; that
would have been against all the rules of war, and he would
never have tried anything of the kind. Joseph’s haste is
to blame for all the loss. He behaved like an old woman
who shouts : “ Save himself who can ! ” Still, in spite of
the capitulation of Paris, I had good prospects in
Fontainebleau, if it had not been for Marmont’s treason.

I AM DRIVEN TO ABDICATION — ^DEATH WILL NOT TAKE ME YET

It was on the 4th of April, 1814. I had just taken the
parade in the courtyard of the “ Gheval Blanc ” and was
returning to my private study with the Prince of Neuchatel
(Berthier) to give him a few more orders before mounting
my horse in order to move my head-quarters to
Thierry, when he asked me, somewhat embarrassed, lor
an audience for my marshals. I gave orders for them to

FROM SUMMIT TO FALL, 1815-1815 =15

enter, but with them tlic Duke of Bassano (Maret), the
Duke of Vicenza (Coulaincourt), and the Grand Manhal
(Bertrand).

“ Out of devotion to your person and your dynasty,"
stuttered one of the marshals, “ we have resolved to tear
away the veil which still hides the terrible truth from you.
Everything is lost if Your Mmesty hesitates to place the
crotm on your son’s head. Only at this price is peace
possible. The army is discouraged, exhausted, and
disorganised. Desertion is already noticeable. ^Vc cannot
dream of returning to Paris, and any clTorts in an attempt
to do so means tire useless shedding of blood.”

This sudden refusal of tlie highest leaders in the army
formed a strange contrast to the zeal of the troops which
surrounded me, but it agreed with tlic reports which the
Duke of Vicenza had made to me on the situation in

Paris. On his return from the mission which he had just
undertaken to the Czar Alex.indcr, the last words of the
latter had been ; “ I ‘do not wish to deceive you, but I
carmot tell you everything. Understand me, and do not
lose an hour in reporting to the Emperor our conversation
and the state of affairs, and come back as quickly as
-possible with the document of abdication in favour of his
son. As for his personal fate I give you my word of
honour that he will be treated decently. But don’t lose
an hour, or cverv'thing will be lost for him, and I wll then
no longer have tlic power of doing anything for him or his
dynast)-.’’

To _mc it svas an infallible sign of the progress of the
defection. There would inevitably have been civil war if
1 continued the struggle. I therefore did not hesitate to
olTcr the sacrifice whicli was demanded from my love of
my country-. I sat doss-n at a small table on svhich were
a few sheets of note-paper and an ink-bottle. Here I
wrote out the document of abdication in favour ^of my
son. I charged the Duke of Vicenza to go to Eaiis, and
appointed as his coadjutors the Prince of the Moskw-a
(Ney), and the Duke of Ragiisa (Marmont) sv-hom lor
twenty years I had been accustomed to ,VP°" “ ^

of my confidcnUal friends. When still only, a kcuten^t of
fill cry I had sliarcd my scanty
brother.® However, as well as I remember, some obsers-a

2i6 memoirs of napoleon I

tions by the Duke of Bassano induced me to prefer Marshal
Macdonald, who was also present.

The yielding up of my crown was not the keenest blow
which Fate held in store for me that day. Gourgaud,
whom I had sent to Marmont, returned without being
able to accomplish his task. Marmont had left my party.
His army-corps no longer covered Fontainebleau, and, on
the news of his defection, the Allies had sent back my
abdication, and declared that they would set up the
throne of the Bourbons again.

At this news a feeling of discouragement came over me.
Events were developing slowly. Everybody was trying
with difficulty to hide ms impatience to obtain a position
in the new State just created by His Majesty Louis XVIII.

All iny proposals for saving the country from a counter-
revolution were met by the bogle of civil war ; for they
knew, that by showing me that this would be the result of
the continuation of the war, they were dealing a deadly
blow at my resolutions. When, driven to the limits of
endurance, I said to them ; “ As we must give up the
idea of defending France, we should at least save Italy,
that it may retain its nationality, and be a place of refuge
for the unfortunate Frenchmen who will be exposed to
the vengeance of the emigres , an icy silence proved to me
only too well that I had nothing more to expect from the
men whom I had raised by my favours to the highest
dignities in the Empire and in the army. My heart,
moved through and through by love for France, was so
exhausted by this struggle, that I insisted no longer on my
proposals. Tru*e to my oath I gave back -the crown
which I had only accepted for the glory and prosperity, of
my country.

Since the time of the retreat from Russia I always
carried poison with nie, which I wore round my neck in
a little silk bag. Yvan had prepared it for me on my
orders, as I was afraid of being taken prisoner by the
Cossacks. . . . My life no longer belonged to my country.
The events of the last few days had again made me my
own master. Why should I suffer so much ? I said to
myself. And who knows but that my death may obtmn .
the crown again for my son ? Then France would be -
saved ? I did not hesitate. I jumped out of bed, mixed

FROM SUMMIT TO FALL, 1812-1815 Q17

the poison with a little water, and drank it with a certain
feeling of bliss. But time had reduced tlie strength of the
poison. Fearful pains brought on sickness. They heard
my groans and hastened to my help. God did not wish
me to die yet. St. Helena was in stord for me.

MY tV’ONDERFUI. MARCH TO PARIS

When I arrived in Golfe Juan from Elba on the 1 8th of
March at four o’clock, I posted men on the roads to stop
all who passed and sent a detachment of twenty-five men
to Antibes. Soon a whole crowd of people assembled
who were astonished at our arrival and the smallness of
our numbers. When a certain mayor saw how weak our
forces were, he said to me : “ We were just beginning to
get peaeefu! and happy, and now you eome to spoil
cvcrytliing again ! ” t can scarcely c-xpress how much
these words moved me, and what gnef they caused me.

Soon afterwards a courier from the Prince of Monaco,
all covered svith lace, was brought to me. He had
formerly been employed in the Empress’s stables. He
recognised me at once. \Vhcn 1 asked him for news he
assured me that the troops and the people were on my
side, that from Paris to hlontilimart he had heard shouts
of “ Long live the Emperor 1 ” On the other hand
Provence was not so well disposed. The particulars
which he gave us consoled our minds for the vexation
which our failure in the excursion to Antibes had caused
us. Soon the Prince of Monaco was conducted to us.
He had been latiiei badly picpared for the meeting by
General Cambronne. I cased his mind and told him that
he was at liberty to return to his principality after my
departure. He told me that he doubted the success of my
undertaking on account of the small number of the troops
which 1 had with me. He reflected the attitude of the
salons, his courier that of the people.

As I was' aware that I must move with the utmost
rapidity, I began to march as soon as the moon rose. No
one, not even Bertrand, knew the way which I svished to
take. At the moment of starting I heard some angry
utterances, because I did riot march on Antibes in order
to get back my twenty-five men. A few grenades thrown
into the town would be sufficient, they thought. I

2 i8 memoirs of NAPOLEON !

reckoned that it would take two hours to get to Antibes,
and two to return. Besides, we should be at least three or
four hours before the town, so that a half-day would have
been lost. If I succeeded in releasing my men it might
have been worth while ; but if I failed, which was quite
possible, my failure would have instilled confidence into
my enemies, and they would have had time to organise.
My plan was to reach Grenoble, which was the centre of
the province. It contained a numerous garrison, an arsenal,
guns, resources of all sorts. The object of my enterprise
consisted therefore in getting possession of Grenoble at the
earliest moment possible and securing the troops, so no
time was to be lost whatever befell. I therefore formed an
advance guard of lOO men under Cambronne, and when
I had arrived at the parting of the roads to Avignon and
Grasse, I gave the order, “To the right,” and only then
did I make known my plan of marching to Grenoble.
I did not want on any account to rest in Grasse, a town of
10,000 inhabitants, but halted on a neighbouring hill and
let my troops breakfast.

A few former Terrorists proposed to me to proclaim the
Revolution in Grasse. I directed them, however, not to
move, and also not to interfere with people who were-
wearing white cockades, and declared that 50 millions of
them would not hold me up. In Digne the people showed
more pleasure on seeing us. Michels and his wife came
and greeted us. I had left my two cannon and my carriage
in Grasse, and directed the mayor to send them to the
arsenal, in Antibes.. I had also left there 1500 muskets,
which- I had brought from Elba, but which I ^d not
require. Everywhere people looked at us with the
greatest astonishment as we marched by. When I was
bivouacking in Gap a great crowd of people surrounded
me. I spoke to everybody as if at a reception in the
Tuileries. The country people were very glad and abused
the Nobility, saying : “'The Nobility only want to yoke
us to the plough.” Old soldiers headed the crowd of
villagers and assured their companions that I was reahy
Bonaparte. Many of the peasants took five-franc pieces
out of their pockets with my likeness, saying : “It is he .
Everybody assured us that the troops and the people were
on our side, and ' that the Bourbons were universally

FROM SUMMIT TO FALL, 1812-1815 219

detested. In the meantime we met no troops of any kind.
We found Sisteron evacuated, and Loverdo took all his
troops with him. Garan, who belonged to this district, had
hidden himself. The imagination of what might happen
was c.'ttrcmely active in us, but all, to the very last man,
were determined to die for our cause, which was the cause
of the French people. We marched ivith the utmost
speed, the vanguard eight leagues in front, next the army,
and finally the rear-guard two leagues behind. The
gendarmes whom we met on the way sold us their horses
in order to mount our 100 Lancers. INTien I reached
La Mure I found Cambronne who told me that he had
had to retreat before a battalion of the 5th Regiment.
I reprimanded him and told him that he ought to have
returned to the town and asserted himself with audacity.
The country people kept assuring us that the soldiers
were on our side, and yet a battalion of the 5th Regiment
was showing opposition, and would not even parley srith
us. I sent the cavalry round to the rear of the battalion,
while I, svith the vanguard, carr)’ing their muskets under
their arms, marched straight up to them. In this svay I
won over these troops, but our self-confidence was not
increased, for before I had led these* men over to us the
commandant tried to make them fire on us ; but the
soldiers had not loaded their muskets. ■ I made a speech
to the battalion and asked their commanding officer
whether he would remain loyal to me. He replied that
until then he thought he was doing lus duty, but hcncc-
fortli he ss’ould follow me cvcrysvhcrc. Botli he and his
men took the oath to me. One of Marchand’s adjutants
had tried to make the men fire ; tlic Lancers had pursued
him. During the flight he spread the report that I had a
large army and numerous cavalry with me. I aflcnvards
reassured some of the old soldiers, and said to them :

What, you would have fired on your Emperor ! ”
Whereupon, thrusting their ramrods into the barrels of
their muskets, they called out : “Just look, and sec if our
guns are loaded ! ” A little further on we met Artillery-
Major Rey, svho reassured us completely. He showed
great zeal and declared that we only needed whips to
drive out those who would oppose us, and that the garrison
of Grenoble was favourably disposed to iis. Before us and

220 MEMOIRS OF NAPOLEON I

behind us marched thousands of country people who
were quite delighted and kept singing : “ The Bourbons
don’t bring us happiness 1 ” A little further on Lieutenant-
Colonel La Bedoy^re joined us, and finally the 7th Line
Regiment came over to us, so that I no longer had any
doubts about the success of the enterprise.

When we arrived before Grenoble at ten o’clock at
night, we found the gates shut and the walls covered
with soldiers. They were shouting : “ Long live the
Emperor ! ” and yet they refused to open the gates,
assuring us that it was General Marchand’s order. I had
the drums beaten, and announced that General Marchand
was relieved of his command as from that moment ;
whereupon the men replied : “ If he is relieved of his
command that’s a different thing,” and they opened the
gates. I asked the Colonel why he had not opened
sooner, to which he replied that he had given Marchand
his word of honour that he would allow him time to get
away with the troops that were willing to follow him.

From Cannes to Grenoble I was an adventurer, but
from Grenoble onwards I was a Ruler. I received one of
General Brayer’s adjutants named Saint-Jon, who informed
me of all that was going on in Lyons, and told me that the
Bourbon Princes were in that town on which I was
marching. The country people kept coming to me from
all directions. They offered to show my troops the way
across the Rhone wherever I wished. I was just about to
manoeuvre in order to cut off the retreat of these princes
iwhen I learned that the town had been abandoned and
that all the troops had declared for me. If I had captured
the princes I should have been greatly embarrassed, for,
only a few moments previously people had been obeying
their orders. It would have been preferable if a govern-
ment of the people had put them to death.

When Louis XVIII heard of my landing Soult had
betaken himself to the Tuileries and declared to him tlmt
it was only a question for the gendarmery, to which the
King returned : “ Everything depends on the first

regiments ; anyhow, it is a very silly business ! ” The
Duke of Dalmatia (Soult) told me about it later on, and
frankly admitted that he had had no confidence in my
enterprise. This marshal did not betray the King, but

FROM SUMMIT TO FALL, J812-1815 221

there was so much against him, that, if I had not been
fully acquainted witli the course of events, I would have
declared him a traitor.

On the way from Lyons to Paris 1 was told that an
army was being placed to bar my road and would light
me. This caused the brave Braycr to remark : “ Let
them yelp, the men will not fight, for they arc all on your
side.” The enthusiasm of the peasantry was so great that
I could have arrived before the capital qt the head of
500,000 men if I had wished.

^Vhcn I returned to France, it was not as a conqueror
but as a dispenser of bounty. I was not merely, as it is
said, tltc Emperor of the soldiers, I was the Emperor of
the peasants, of the proletariat, the Emperor of France.

That accounts for die sympathy between us, it was not
the same with the privileged classes. The nobles served
me and crowded into my ante-rooms. There were no
appointments which they did not accept or ask for. I
have counted among my servants the Montmorcncys, the
Noaillcs, the Rohans, die Beauveaux, die Mortemarts ;
but between them and me there was never an^hing in
common. With the common people it was quite diircrcnt :
their turn of mind agreed more with mine. I have come
from the people, so they listened to my voice. 'The
recruits and the peasants were a sight to behold. I did
not flatter them, on the contrary I treated them very
striedy, but for all that they would surround me and
shout ; “ Long live the Emperor 1 ” That was because
there existed between them and me a common natural
feeling. They looked on me as their supporter and
protector against the nobles. I only needed to make a
sign, a tivitch of the eyelashes, and the Nobility would
have been slain in every province. But I did not wish to
be a King of a peasant insurrecdon, but, if possible, to
rule by^a Constitudon. I wanted the lordship of the
world, and, in order to make sure of it, an unlimited
power was necessary to me. I wanted the Kingdom of
the World, but who in my place, would not have trished
for it ? The world summoned me to rule it. Rulers and
subjects vied with one another in placing themselves
under my sceptre. I have seldom met with opposition in

222 MEMOIRS OF NAPOLEON I

France, but I have met with it on a few occasions from
some insignificant Frenchmen, as well as from princes
who are to-day proud of the fact that they are no longer
obliged to treat a man of the people as if he were their
equal.

I FIND MY PRIVATE STUDY STILL INTACT

On his flight to Ghent Louis XVIII had left his most
private jDapers in his study, as for instance, a small pocket-
iDOok with love-letters from different mistresses, and
correspondence with Davaray, with Louis XVI, with the
Duchess d’Angoulemc, further the portrait of his wife in
a gold case, likewise Malesherbe’s letter reporting the
death of Louis XVI, finally, a large mahogany table
covered with books, the authors of which had dedicated
them to him since his arrival in Paris, together with all
the petitions, memoranda, and denunciations which he
had been receiving for nine months.

When I arrived in the Tuileries on the 20th, at liine
o’clock in the evening, that is to say, twenty or twenty-one
hours afterwards, I entered my private study, where
‘nothing had been altered, and where nobody had ven-
tured to enter. My astonishment was great when I
noticed that the most private and secret documents lay
open there. As I was very busy it took me a fortnight to
look through everything. This led to some of the strangest
domestic scenes. One day a lady asked for an audience.
She entered into all kinds of assurances, and I granted her
request. In the evening, an hour later, I returned to my
study and continued the inspection of the papers found
there. Among- them %vas a request from the same lady,
couched in the strangest language. For a moment I was
very annoyed, and felt inclined to revoke the act eff
pardon which I had promised. But when I remembered
that I had given my word to forget everything that was
written since the taking of Paris, I signed the pardon
after all.

THE DRAMA OF WATERLOO, JUNE i8tH, 1815

I arrived in Paris on the 20th of March, 1815. On the
24th the Count d’Artois took leave of his Guard _ m
Bethune, and on the ist of April the tricolour was floating

FROM SUMMIT TO FALL, i8i2-:8i5 223

over Lille' and the whole of the north of France.
Louis XVIII fled to Ghent, On the i8tli of April the
Duke d’Angouleme seized the bridge over the Drome and
marched into Valence. On tlic lath he was already a
prisoner, and was set free by my order. On the toth
hlaneille surrendered and hoisted the tricolour. On the
20th of the same month a salvo of too guns announced
that the Imperial flag w'as floating over the whole Empire.

On the 15 th of June, that is to say, six weeks after the
pacification, 1 commenced hostilities and crossed the
Sambre, which I ought to have done a month ' earlier,
namely, on the tsth of May; but France was not yet
reckoning on a lasting peace at that time, and public
opinion would have been dead against a premature
attack. Besides, the troops of the line were not sullicicntly
strong at the time to occupy the fortified towns, especially .
those lying on the northern frontier, without being afraid-
of losing them. It would not have been possible to march
into Belgium tvitlt more than 40,000 men, while Lord
Wellington and Bliicher together controlled over 180,000
men; they would therefore have been four to -one..
Wien we took the field in tlic middle of June tve had
120,000 men while Lord Wellington and Bliicher con-
trolled about 220,000. Tilings had altered and they would
have had only two to one, in case tlicir forces were united.

If I had postponed the attack 1 would have possessed a
stronger and better organised army, but I had heard and
believed that the Austro-Russian Army, 400,000 men ,
strong would commence their attack on the ist of July.

I intended defeating the English and Prussian armies
’ separately ; that was a matter of course. The operations
of the 13th, 14th, 15th, i6th, and 17th of June were
carried out svith skill. First Wellington and Bliicher
were surprised and attacked separately, Bliicher was
beaten and Wellington compelled to retreat. The
incomprehensible slowness of Grouchy caused the loss of
- the Battle of Waterloo, which 60,000 to 70,000 French
had been winning till five o’clock in the afternoon over
about 36,000 English, 54,000 Belgians and Hanovarians,
and 30,000 Prussians of Billow’s army-corps. In addition
there came 32,000 more men from Blucher’s 'two army-
corps, the 1st and the 4th, which Grouchy was to have

224 MEMOIRS OF NAPOLEON I

held in check. The enemy’s forces amounted, con-
sequently,- to 152,000 men against, at the most, 67,000.
Apart from the mistakes made by Grouchy, many other
causes had. a great influence on the result of the battle.
At other times the French, even though they -were very
much in a minority, would have won the victory, and it
was only the stubborn and inflexible bravery of the
English troops that prevented them from doing so.

I don’t yet understand the loss of the Battle of Waterloo.
It is true General Reille, who had been fighting the
English in Spain for a long time, told me that their
infantry was excellent, that he knew of no troops eicept
my Guard who were superior to them. Reille told me
further that it was especially owing to their discipline that
the English manoeuvred with the utmost exactness under
the most terrible fire. They would move thirty paces
forward or to the rear, then halt and fire, move again
thirty paces forward or backward; and fire again. And
all the time they would keep the most exact order. In
time, of course, it will be known how the battle went.

Who can have ordered Guyot to risk my Cavalry
Guard ? It is clear that he attacked before the moment
that I assume in my report. Doubtless he moved without
my orders. I do not believe, as Gourgaud asserts, that
I gave my orders through Bertrand, or perhaps my orders
were misunderstood. I did not wish to hazard the
Cavalry of the Guard, for that would mean putting
everything at stake.

I should have given Suchet an army-corps under my
command, I should have sent Davout a month earlier to
organise my army, and appointed Clauzel Minister of
War. Or I ought to have given Soult the command of
the Guard. He did not wish me to employ Ney. I
' should have spent the night of the 15th in Fleurus, and
given Grouchy’s command to Suchet, and given the
former the command of all the cavalry, as I had not got
Murat. The soldiers did not know each other well
enough to possess the proper esprit ^ de corps. The
were better than the infantry. It is a pity that I did no
fall at Waterloo, for that would have been a fine ^^ding.
.My situation is frightful ! I am like a dead man, yet lull
of life !

Marshal Lnnncs

rrt)tn a Portrflit by I’crnn In the Versailles Museum

FROM SUMMIT TO FALL, 1812-1815 225

Oh God ! Perhaps the rain of the 17th of June had
more to do with the loss of Waterloo than we tliink 1 If
I had not been so exhausted I would have spent tlic
whole night on horsebaek. The apparently most trivial
circumstances have often the greatest ctrcct.

DCFORE THE ABDICATION

After, the loss of the Battle of Waterloo it was a question,
not of saving me, but of saving France. They wished me
to abdicate. But had people thought of the inevitable
consequences of this abdication ? It was only round me,
round my name, that the army grouped itself ; to tear
me from it meant its dissolution. If 1 had been repulsed
in Cannes when I landed I could have understood it, but
now — that I cannot understand. A government is not
overthrown with impunity when the enemy is at the gates.
Did people think that perhaps phrases would put the
foreigners on to a wrong scent? If they had deposed me
a fortnight earlier it would have been a courageous act.
But now I formed a part of what the cnernv’ was attack-
ing, and consequently also a part of what France had to
defend. When it gave me up, it gave itself up, it admitted
a weakness, declared itself thereby conquered, and
encouraged the boldness of the victors. It was not freedom
that deposed me, but Waterloo, an act of fear, which
France’s enemies used to their advantage.

WHAT I OUGHT TO HAVE DONE AFTER WATERLOO —
HY SUSTAKES

Everybody expresses his views of the events of this
time. I was unfortunate, and now every one thinks he
can attack me. That is in fact very easy. When I got
back to Paris I was thoroughly exhausted. For three days
I had neither eaten nor slept. When I was waiting for
the men whom I had sent for, I took a bath. If I had
been in the Chamber of Deputies, they would at least
have listened to me with respect. But as I was forbidden
by the Constitution to attend the meetings, my enemies
would have attacked me with rancour as soon as I had
retired. Either I should have had to rule like Cromwell,
or been obliged to have Fouche shot. I ought to have

226 MEMOIRS OF NAPOLEON I

unmasked him as a traitor, who only unfolded the tri-
colour in order to betray it. I should have been obliged
to prove that the salvation of the country lay only in me.
I should have had to demand from the Chamber the
heads of thirty deputies. Perhaps, from love of my
country, I would have taken refuge in this last expedient,
if I had considered success possible, but I did not believe
it, and my whole ego reared up at the thought of smearing
myself with blood.

If Fouche, instead of betraying me, had come out
openly on my side, he would have been very useful to me,
for he was the soul of the party opposed to me. NoW he
will regret it, for he has already made shipwreck.

I ought to have had him shot ; it was a great mistake
that I did not do so. Without doubt I ought to have
gone to Parliament, but I was too exhausted. Who
would suppose that everything would be decided' so
quickly ? Who would assume that Lafayette would
declare Parliament to be in permanent sitting ? It was
seven o’clock when I arrived in Paris, and by noon the
Chambers were in full rebellion !

One must also not forget that I am only a man after all.
History will reproach me for walking off the world’s stage
too soon. I admit that, in my resentment, I was a little
careless in my resolution. When, from Malmaison I
offered the Provisional Government to place myself again
at the head of the army, in order to take advantage of the
Allies’ lack of wisdom and destroy them under the walls of
Paris, before the day was over 25,000 Prussians would
have laid down their arms. But they declined to have
me ; I told the ringleaders to go to the devil, and took
my departure. I acted wrongly ; the true Frenchmen
have the right to reproach me for this. I should have
mounted my horse, when Prayer’s division appeared
before Malmaison, have caused myself to be led into the
middle of the troops, taken up a position at once and
beaten the enemy, then seized the Dictatorship, and
appealed to the inhabitants of the Paris suburbs. This
crisis of twenty-four hours would have saved ^ France
from a second Restoration. Through a great victory 1
would have diminished the impression of Waterloo, and
would besides have been able to treat on behalf of my son.

FROM SUMMIT TO FALL, 1812-1815 227

if the Allies had persisted in declaring that it was only
towards me that their anger was directed.

1 made another mistake. I started too soon from the
Isle of Elba. I ought to have waited till the Congress liad
broken up, and the princes had returned home. I was
deceived, for I was told tliat tlic Congress had broken
up ; but it had not. I ought not to have occupied my-sclf
with the Constitution, ought to have used quite a different
language to France, spoken of the dangers with which the
country was threatened, and seized the Dictatonhip till
the time of the general peace. 1 was able to do so without
danger, if I had only appealed to the mass of the common
people. Tlieir patriouc enthusiasm would have reduced
the Paris salons to a state of icy terror and brought all
intrigues to nought. After I was victorious I could have
employed my time in establishing a really constitutional
government.

I also acted ivrongly in tju.arrclling with Talleyrand.
He possesses cverytlung which I lack. He would have
held in ills hands all the threads of diplomatic intrigue.
If I had frankly allowed him to share in my greatness, he
would have served me well, and I would have died on the
throne. He is the ideal diplomat. He possessed my
whole confidence and never abused it. I must do him
this justice.

1 AGAIN GIVE Ur THE IDEA OF SEIZING THE CONTROL OF
THE STATE

The English cruiser squadron on the west coast of
France was not very strong. Two corvettes were before
Bordeaux and were there blockading a French frigate,
and pursuing the Americans who were sailing out of the
harbour in great numbers every day. Close to the Island
of Aix we had tivo well-armed frigates, the corvette
Vulcan at the back of the harbour, and a strong brig. All
were being blockaded by a battleship of 74 guns — one of
the smallest in the British Navy — and one or two corvettes.
Doubtless, by sacrificing one or two ships, the French
could have escaped from the harbour. But the oldest of
the captains was weak and declined to run out of the
harbour, while the sei^ond, fully determined, would have
made the attempt. Probably the first had received

228 MEMOIRS OF NAPOLEON I

instructions from Fouclie, who already betrayed me
openly and \vished to hand me o\^er to the English.'

If tlie task had been entrusted to Admiral Verhuellj
they had promised me on my departure from Paris/' he
^vouid probably have sailed out. The crews of both tlie
frigates were filled ^rith loyalt>- and enthusiasm for me.

The gan-ison of the Island of Aix consisted of 1500
i^Iarincs wlio formed a fine regiment. The officers were
angiy^ because the frigates would not sail out and proposed
to fit out two fishing boats, each of fifteen tons, in die har-
bour. The )'Oung midshipmen ^rere niiling to sen*e as
sailors. But at tlie moment for the canning out of the
plan die}' declared that it would be difficult to reach
ikmerica -without touching any point of the coast of Spain
or Portugal.

In diese circumstances I formed a kind of council of
die persons surrounding me. It pointed out to me
that one could no longer count on either the frigates or
the armed fishing craft, diat die latter offered no'kind of
guarantee of die possibilit}' of success, and that diey
•would be captured by the British on the open sea, or fall
into die hands of die other Allies.

Thus diei'e remained no-^v onh* two possibilities :
either to go back inland in order to ti'y once more the
fortune of arms, or to seek asylum in England. \\'iien
I examined the fii-st possibiHt}*, I found nw'seJf at die head
of 1500 iMarincs -^riio -were full of zeal and good-aall. The
mail in command of die island 'v\'as a former ofiicer of die
Eg}-ptian Army and quite devoted to me. He irould
have landed these 1500 merf in Rodiefort. There we
\s-ould have been strengthened by die garrison of that
toivn -whose attitude -was excellent. ^\'e could have
called up the garrison of Rochelle, ivhich consisted of four
battahons, iriio had ofiei'ed dieir serrices. In diis wa}' I
was in die position of uniting iridi Gkaieral Clanzel, who
■^\as in command of die amiy in Bordeaux, or irith General
La.marque, -who had done such excellent tcork widi the
army in La ^'endee. Both W'ere expecting me. ^

coii/d easilv have carried civil -^sar into the interior of

_

But. as Paris had been taken and the Parli^ent
dissolved, as thei'e is'ere 500,000 to 600,000 enemies in the

FROM SUMMIT TO FALL, 1812-1815 229

heart of France, the civil war could have had no other
result than the destruction of all those splendid men, so
devoted to me, which France possessed. This would have
been a grievous and irreparable loss, it would have spoiled
the hopes of France’s future destiny, and would have had
no other result than putting me in a position to bargain
and obtain favourable conditions for my own interests.

But I had given up all my claims as a ruler, and only
ashed for a tjuiet place of refuge. 1 only wanted to live as
a private citizen. For that purpose America was the
most suitable country, the goal of my wishes. Finally
England appealed to me with her reasonable laws, and it
seemed to me, after my first meeting with Captain Mait-
land, that the latter would take me to England with my
whole suite, where I should be decently treated. From
that moment I should be under the protection of the laws
of England. I therefore resolved to give myself up to the
Englirii squadron as soon as Maitland had definitely
agreed to receive us. W’c returned to him, as he had
explained by word of mouth that he was empowered by
his Government to receive me, in ease I went on board
the BilUrophon, and carry me and my escort to England.
I therefore surrendered, not because I was compelled to
do so by circumstances, as I could still have remained in
France, but because I wished to live as a private citizen
and not to trouble myself any more with State affairs, and
especially not to confuse those of France. Certainly I
svould not have taken this resolution if I had had the
least suspicion of the unworthy treatment which was to be
meted out to me. Everybody may be assured of that.
My letter to the Prince Regent of England is sufficient
proof of my confidence and conviction. Captain Maitland,
to whom the contents were officially imparted before 1
went on board his ship, made no remark on it, and thus
recognised and endoned the meaning of this letter.

CHAPTER XI

THOUGHTS AND PLANS

A FEDERATION OF NATIONS, MY GREAT WISH

O NE of my favourite ideas was the fusion, the
federation of the nations, which had been
separated by revolutions and politics. There are
in Europe more than 30 milhon French, 15 milhon
Spaniards, as many Italians, and 30 million Germans.
I wanted to unite them all into one strong, national body.
The accomplisher of this work would be awarded by
Posterity with its most beautiful wreath, and I felt myself
strong eimugh and called on to undertake this work.
When this was done people could devote themselves to
the realisation of the ideal, at present only a dream, of
a higher civilisation. Then there ^vould be no more
vicissitudes to fear, for there would be only one set of law^,
one kind of opinion, one view, one interest, the interest of
mankind. Then perhaps one could realise for Europe the
thought of an ampliictyony, a North American Congress.
And what views would then be opened out, what a
spectacle the world would present !

The fusion of the 30 million Frenchmen under one law
had already taken place, that of the Spaniards being on
the point of completion ; for one must not judge a thing,
as is generally done, by its result. Because circumstances
prevented the completion of the subjugation of the
Spaniards, people now think they are impossible to
subject. And yet it is a fact that, at the very moment
when victory escaped me, the Cortes in Cadiz were in
secret negotiations with me. Besides, Spain was not lost
to me through her resistance, nor by means of England s
help, but in consequence of my own mistakes, and the
misfortunes which I met with, but especially because I
was so careless as to remove myself and my whole power
a thousand leagues from Spain. Had it not been for this

230

THOUGHTS AND PLANS 231

Spain would have been pacified in three or four
yean. Peace would have returned to the Peninsula, a
new and happy period of intclleetual and social freedom
for the country' would have begun, and, instead of hating
me, the new-born nation would have blessed me, that
nation for rvhich the most frightful struggles are now in

store. .

In Italy the fusion nas almost completed. Here one
only needed to natch quietly, the thing was thriving
there alone. Lvery day was bringing the fruits of unity,
legislation, and the new flight in thought and feeling to
maturity. Tlic union of Piedmont, Parma, Tuscany, and
the P.ap.al States with France was only transitory, and liad
no other purpose than to facilitate the completion of the
national education of the Italians, and to keep the whole
under one's eye.

And so the South of Europe was already approaching
very close to the great g0.1l, and then, when the thing was
complete, what would tlic South have to fear from the
Kortii? Must not every human efibrt break against such

walls r . .

The unification of Germany required more time. Here
dw i would have had to hepn with the simplification of
lit huge composition, not just because the people are not
s’cl fine for tialion.il ide-is, but lest they should give
ihowclvca up too violently to the thing that vvas long
taminating in their hearts. It is incomprclicnsible to me
tal no German Prince up to the present has had tlic idea
tfunifylns! tlic whole. If Pcstmyhnd mtioc me a German
fnetc. I would !i.i\c rescued this nation from the storms
d w d.iys under one scepUe. With thirty nulUon
teains turroundmg my tlironc, as 1
W ken chosen and appoinlcd by them ^ F^cror f
UmM never have been forwiVcit. iW tlicir Emperor I

* 5-.’4 never have been brought to St.

Has pt.in of bringing .ilmui a J'f Llmkded

talitis the noblest, most courageous and higtet m nuea
V«-nas wrecked'llirough my

5 ctay others in the ’'f, i,-, been given,

Vhi\ not lost for all ‘Jo'-. fthing

khset of circumstances will carry >

'^finemit. In the first great general

232 MEMOIRS OF NAPOLEON I

out, the ruler who understands how to unite his interests
with those of the common people, will see himself in a
moment head of all Europe, and yAll then be able to do
what he likes in this respect.

THE IDEAL OF A CONSTITUTION

The constitution of a State must be created in such a
way that it does not disturb the actions of a Government,
and so force it to break it. No Constitution has remained
the same as it was at the beginning. Its progress is always
subject to men and circumstances. If a Government that
is too strong has its disadvantages, a weak one has still
more. Governments are compelled every day to break
the law. It cannot be otherwise, for then government
would be impossible.

There is not a single Minister who has not been liable
at some time to impeachment. Rule cannot be despotic
because there is neither a feudal system, a mediatory
body, nor a precedent on which it can act. As soon as a
Government becomes tyrannical it must suffer in public
opinion and will never regain confidence. Therefore a
Council is necessary for unforeseen cases, and the Senate
is most suitable for this purpose.

IS THERE REAL DESPOTISM?

In my opinion there is no such thing as despotism pure
and simple. Ideas are relative. If a sultan has heads cut
off at his pleasure, his own head is in most danger of all,
for that very reason, of suffering the same fate. That p
the way of the world, and all the might of a ruler is
shattered at last on the rock of established custom. In
Egypt I was conqueror, ruler, unlimited master; I ruled
the whole nation through my orders of the day, and yet
my power did not penetrate to the interior of the houses
and families. It did not lie in my power to , forbid free
speech in the coffee-houses. In this respect they were
less restrained than the people of Paris, for it had always
been the custom. Although they bore the yoke of sla\^ry
everywhere and in every other circumstance, here they
wished to be free, and they were so. The coffee-houses
were the strongholds of free speech, the market-nlaces ot
free mental intercourse. Here men declaimed and talhe

'riic Buttle ot Waterloo

Prom n I.tl!i»i;rni)h It) St hupjinn

THOUGHTS AND PLANS 233

TOthout any reservation, and even if I had wished to, I
could not have closed their mouths. If I happened to
come to such a place myself, they bowed respectfully to
me, but that was nothing more nor less than a personal
tribute. And yet the lives, the well-being, and the
adliction of thousands of people lay in my hands
unrestricted.

A RUPUBUC I.EAns TO THE DESPOTISM OP Alt IHDIVIDUAL OR
or A CASTE

A republic is the form of government which elevates
the character most, and possesses in the highest degree
the germ of great actions. But its very greatness con-
sumes it sooner or later ; for, in order to be powerful, it
needs of necessity a unity of action which leads sooner or
later to the despotism of an individual, or to aristocracy.
The latter is certainly the worst of all forms of despotism,
Rome, Venice, England, and even France arc incontestable
proofs of this truth.

ON POPULARITY

What is popularity ? What is gentleness ? Who was
more popular, and who was gentler than the unfortunate
Louis XVI ? And what a fate was destined for him 1
He was put to death ! One must serve a nation worthily,
but not take pains to flatter the people. To win them
you must do them good. For nothing is more dangerous
than to echo people’s opinions and say just what they
want to hear. When, aftenvards, they do not get all they
viawt, the,’/ get restless P.Dd believe yew have btelteR yewr
word. And if you oppose them then, they hate you in
proportion as they think themselves deceived.

The first duty of a prince is doubtless to do what tile
people wish, but the common people scarcely ever want
what they say they do. Tlicir will and needs should be
less expressed by them than felt by the ruler.

Doubtless every kind of rule can maintain itself, a kind
one, as well as a severe one. Each has its advantages and
its disadvantages ; everything in the world preserves a
kind of balance. When I was asked what was the purpose
of my severe expressions and regulations, I had to answer ;
“ In order to spare myself the necessity of having to carry

234 MEMOIRS OF NAPOLEON I

out what I threatened to do,” What bad things have I
done, anyway? What blood have I spilled? Who in
my position can boast of having done better ? What
ejDoch of history, that had the same difficulties to contend
with, has such harmless results to point to as mine?
With what am I really reproached? They confiscated
the archives of my administration, they took possession of
my papers ; and what did they bring to light ? Have
not all princes who found themselves in the same situation
as myself, in the midst of parties, embarrassments, and
conspiracies, surrounded themselves with criminals and
executions ?

A REVOLUTION IS THE GREATEST MISFORTUNE FOR A NATION

Whatever people may say, a revolution is one of the
greatest misfortunes with which Divine anger can punish
a nation. It is the scourge of the generation that caused
it, and for long years, nay, perhaps for a whole century,
it brings unhappiness to all, and happiness to only a few.
True social happiness lies in the greatest possible order, in
the harmony of everybody’s pleasure.

HOW I UNDERSTAND POLICY

My policy consists in ruling men according to the will
of the great majority. In this way I believe one recognises
the sovereignty of the people. In order to end the war in
La Vendee, I made myself a Catholic, as a Mussulman
I managed to establish myself in Egypt, and as an
Ultramontanist I won all hearts in Italy. If I were
ruling a Jewish people, I would restore the Temple oi
Solomon. In this manner I spoke of liberty in the free
part of San Domingo ; I confirmed the state of slavery m
the Isle of France, even in the other half of San Domingo.

I reserved the right to improve and limit the conditions ot
slavery where I allowed it to remain, but in the plac^
where I upheld liberty I meant to restore order ana
discipline.

AN OPEN ROAD TO TALENT

I have always kept pace with the opinion of the people
and with events. I have never laid stress on the opinion
of individuals, but I paid great attention to the genera

THOUGHTS AND PLANS 235

opinion of tiie public. How would crime have helped me
tlicn ? I am a great fatalist, and have always had too great a
scorn for men to take refuge in crime in order to frustrate
their attacks. I have always had the opinion of five or
six million men on my side, what need had I then for
crime ?

If I had remained on the throne, I would have died
with thereputadon of beingthe greatest man that ever lived.
However, as I have failed in my purpose, I shall only be
considered as an extraordinary man, for my rise was
without example, as it took place without crime ! I have
fought fifty pitched battles, nearly all of which I won.
I have devised a code of laws and put it into practice,
which tvill hand dosvn my name to posterity. From
nothing I soared until I became the mightiest ruler in the
world. Europe lay at my feet. My ambition was great,
that I admit, but it was cold and calculating, and called
forth by events and the opinions of great men. I always
held the view that sovereignty lay in the people. In
reality the Imperial Government was a kind of republic.
Called by tlie voice of the people to tlie head of the
Government, my motto was : An open road to talent 1 ”
And I gave no preference to birth over ability. And this
system of equality was the reason why the English oligarchy
hated me so much.

SIY TITLE IS “ EMPEROR OF THE FRENCH ”

The Institut dc France had proposed giving me the
title of “ Augustus ” or " Germameus.” Augustus has
only won the Battle of Actium. Germanicus could only
interest the Romans by his defeats, for, throughout his
life he only distinguished himself by deeds of second-rate
importance. Nothing is known of the lives of the Roman
Emperors which could make one envy them.

The only man, who %vas once Emperor, and who
distinguished himself by his character, and his numerous
famous acts, was Casar. If there were a title that I could
wish for, it would be that of “ Cicsar.” But so many
petty princes have dishonoured — if it can be dishonoured
— this title in such a way that it has nothing in
with the name of the great Caesar.

My title is “ Emperor of the French.”

236

MEMOIRS OF NAPOLEON I

MY INTENTIONS WITH REGARD TO ITALY

All the arrangements which I made in Italy were only
provisional. My plan was to create a single state out of
this great peninsula. For this reason I reserved to myself
the Iron Grown in order to hold in my hand the lead of
all the peoples of Italy. Since then I preferred incorporat-
ing Rome, Tuscany, Genoa, and Piedmont in the French
Empire to uniting them with the Kingdom of Italy, as
these nations preferred coming under the Imperial
sceptre. That also allowed of a large number of the
inhabitants of these districts migrating to France and of
the sending of a number of French there, besides arrang-
ing for the entry of their recruits and sailors into the
French regiments or the naval squadrons in Toulon.

For Naples alone a special arrangement had to be
devised, and the appearance of a permanent government
had to be given to the temporary one which had been
created, as this great city had been accustomed to a large
amount of independence, and because King Ferdinand
was in Sicily, close by, while the English squadron was
cruising off the coast. But the moment Italy was pro-
claimed a kingdom, and my second son was crowned in
Rome, the Italians of Sicily, Sardinia, Naples, Genoa,
Piedmont, Florence, and Milan would all have flocked
round the throne of the ancient and noble Italy.

I RESPECTED THE GERMANS

I could have laid the German millions under con-
tributions of war, if I had wished, and it would only have
been right and fair. But I took good care not to treat
them so ruthlessly, for I respected them. ^ That the
Germans should hate me in' spite of that is perfectly
natural. I was compelled to fight on their territory for
ten years, and they were unable either to realise my true
intentions, or to see, through my thoughts,, the great and
important benefits which I purposed giving them.

I HAVE TREATED THE POLES WRONGLY

I regret that circumstances were stronger than my will.

I wanted to restore the Kingdom of Poland as a, strong
and powerful rampart against the incessant ambition o
the Czars.

THOUGHTS AND PLANS 237

Two possibilities came under my consideration, as 1
pondered in the autumn of 1806 in Charlottcnburg on
the possible consequences of the Battle of Jena and the
complete reorganisation of the Prussian Monarchy, which
had formerly been so powerful on account of the victories
of the great Frederick. Should I complete the destruction
of Prussia, or should I accept the apologies of its king, a
man of honour, in order to attach him to me by the bonds
of gratitude, wliich was honestly meant on his side?
But I required Hanover, the Saxon Provinces of Prussia,
fVestphalia, and Franconia. 1 also needed Magdeburg.

If I had placed the Polish Grown on the head of the
King of Prussia, Frederick William, as King of Prussia
and Poland svould have become a more powerful monarch
than before the Battle of Jena. Austria would not have
been in a position to c.xcliangc Galicia for the Illyrian
Provinces.

Following up this train of tliought I agreed to the
negotiations svith Marquis Lucchesini and General
Zastrow. I also caused Kosciuszko to be sounded on the
value of the help which I might obtain from the Poles, in
case I called them to arms in order to restore their nation-
ality. To this purpose, too, it happened that I entrusted
Generals Dombrowski and Zaionezek witli important
missions.

I say it with regret, because no one was better able to
judge than myself of the personal and chivalrous worth of
the Poles : Poland did not answer to my call. However,
if the King of Prussia had had fewer pnvate virtues, and
had resolved rather to sacrifice the Russian Army, Poland
would have been restored. The Polish insurrection
would have been of slight importance directly the rem-
nants of the Prussian Army had gathered under my
banners to fight the Russian Army, which could only put
into the fight against me 160 battalions and 160 squadrons,
numbering altogether not more than 80,000 men.

Talleyrand criticised my Polish plans. Perhaps he
contributed in maldng their execution impossible, in
order to prevent my fall through a gigantic undertaking.
In fact I was not svithout anxiety concerning Germany,
and Austria’s plans of retaliation. Perhaps it- '-1
mean sacrificing France’s interests if I "

238 MEMOIRS OF NAPOLEON I

other matters than the compelling of the Russian Army
to recross the Niemen, and the signing by Czar Alexander
of a peace which would prove for the second time inside
two years the incontestable superiority of the French
Army.

When I decided on the war of 1812, I thought again of
the restoration of the Kingdom of Poland, and, for this
purpose, I caused, through the Duke of Bassano (Maret),
to be added to the treaties with Prussia of the 24th
February, 1812, and with Austria of the 14th March, 1812,
secret supplementary clauses. Through these private
treaties the two States had agreed to the possibility of the
restoration of Poland and undertook to cede their Polish
Provinces in certain circumstances in return for indemni-
fication elsewhere, which should be agreed upon later, in
case a victory should not compel Russia to give up her
Polish Provinces.

THE ENGLISH GOVERNMENT QUITE DIFFERENT FROM OURS

In the case of a nation like the English where
everything is influenced by public opinion, even the
actions of the Ministers of State, and the resolutions of
Parliament, it will be easily understood that the Press
enjoys unlimited freedom. Our Constitutions, on the
other hand, do not require the interference of the people
in State affairs ; the Senate, the Council of State, the
Legislative Assembly, thought, spoke, and acted for the
nation, each according to its particular powers. If the
people were not satisfied with this, the existing organisa-
tion had to be completely altered ; but _ it has been
proved that such a force of public opinion produces
nothing but confusion and excitement, so that a strict
surveillance of the Press would have to be set up.

In the English constitutional system public opinion may
influence the Government ; consequently the Press cannot
be prevented from denouncing Ministers and criticising
their actions. The devastating effects of such a usage are
however balanced by the orderly customs of the people.
The King of England is withal the supreme head 01 the
religion, and a powerfully constituted aristocracy is m a
position to hold the crowd in check. The common
people are too rough and crude to let themselves oc

THOUGHTS AND PLANS 239

excited by writings. For all that it is not quite certain
that the English Government will not be overthrotvn
some day through the liberty of its Press. In France,
where the common people have the gift of quick appre-
hension, arc endowed with lively imaginations, and arc
susceptible of strong impressions, tire unlimited freedom
of the Press would be absolutely fatal.

Besides, what is the result in England of tliat liberty to
print everything against highly placed personages ? Does
It do any good? Docs it alter anything? Docs it per-
chance improve morals? On the contrary, as they arc
sure of being attacked, whatever their conduct may be,
they simply let the people talk, and only become worse.
Even Fox admitted that the liberty of the Press in England
caused immense confusion. A well-regulated surveillance
of tlie Press can never have unpleasant consequences.

THE AMERICANS AS AVENGERS OF THE SEA

The English know very well that the Americans would
give their lives to the last man if necessary in the defence
of their native land. It is also known that the Americans
do not like carrying on war in foreign countries. They
have not yet reached the point of causing the English
serious anxiety. Some day perhaps they trill be the
avengers of the sea, but this period of time, which I
might perhaps have shortened, is still far distant. The
Americans will not become a great people all at once, but
only gradually.

The English have lost America because it freed itself.
India trill be lost to the English by a foreign invasion.
The loss of America was quite natural. When children
grow up they want to go their otvn way. The Indians,
on the other hand, will not grow up, they always remain
children. Therefore the catastrophe can only come from
without.

MY CODE OF LAWS — FRENCH LOVE OF LITIGATION

If one trishes to strengthen a nation one must hasten to
regulate the most important subjects of legislation by a
code of laws. The Civil Code, without being perfect, has
done much good work. Every one knows, since it was

240 LIEMOIRS OF NAPOLEON I

put into fbrcCj tiie principles by wbicb be bas to conduct
bimselfj and arranges bis property and affairs accordingly.

Tbe Criminal Code bas tbe most influence on public
tranquillity and safety. It contributes much to placing
tbe French in that condition of peace and security ^vbich
tbey need so badly after sucb a long period of excitement.

In tbe discussions over tbe dra'^\nng up of tbe Gi\dl
Code tbe objections cbiefly made ^s^ere that it did not give
tbe judge sufScient scope. Extreme exactness in tbe la-ivs
has been found unpleasant and oppressive by all nations
since ancient times, and tbey have therefore introduced
into their la'^\^ only main features of an ob\dous and
productive character. People have perceived that the
application of tbe la'^v varies infinitely. One 'vvould tr}' in
vain to introduce a definite application of tbe lan^ to all
offenceSj and one would soon be forced to see that laws
made in this spirit and ndtb this Mnd of exactness is'ould
be incomplete. Besides tbey -^vould often be found
lacking in their application. Therefore this mistake bas
lightly been regarded as a reproach to tbe outlined
scheme for a Chdl Code, for it is true that it does not
allow tbe Courts sufficient scope and is too dogmatic.
"VVlien a la'^v* does not fulfil its purpose, and does^ not
make its intentions clear, a judge •svdil often give a decision
against his o^\m 'vsdll through acting on tbe strict letter of
the iatv.

"To sacrifice tbe interests of private persons in cases
that are not private means as much as to say that tbe la\s'
can be invalid. Such a principle must be a sufficient
reason for its complete abolition.

My Code of Lav's placed a fairly good barrier to the
disorder caused by love of litigatioUj but there still
remained a good deal to be done by tbe la'^vgiver. namely,
to think out means of preventing people not only firom
indulging in legal disputes — ^for sucb means 'ssill always
remain useless, because the motives of these disputes be
too deep in human nature — but to prevent one-third of
tbe population fi-om lifting on tbe quarrels of tbe other
two-thirds, and even li\ting weU. My idea was gradually
to bring about sucb a state of afiairs that barristei's would
be quite superfluous. How much fewer the number ot
iav^uits "Would be in tbe world then 1 But this rcsu t

THOUGHTS AND PLANS 9^ i

could only be attained by making law» wliirli wrri- e(iii||y
understood, of the greatest possible siin|)Ii( i(y, iiiid fi-tv ill
number, and by enabling every citr/en to obitiiii tiiilllririii
insight into them to judge an impending rj/(irr||y
himself. To this idea of mine many objections have hl'/•(|
made, and many obstacles have been placed in (he v/iiy,
so that, pudn^ to my continual lack of lime, I had (o leayi;
the affair as it stood for the time being, yet / am lliiiily
convinced that it can he carried out.

The Civil Code, tlic Order of J’roce/)orc, »/id (he
Commercial Code, besides the Criminal Oale, (laye all
met svith success by me. Tlie Civil Code is (he lavAh'/Ok
of the centuiy.

Freedom is the need of a class that is not very imriv-ff/in
and is privileged by circumstances ; '/juzitiy, on (he
other hand, is nhat pleases tJie crovid.

t AM ACAI'-TT tTATC LOf.rt

One has only to consider v.Lat Joa.os can i^4 lo, in
order to realise their danger, 7t-ere£ore / •avM
have anything to do v,-ith tliem, have ii'osryi V/,’/)/)
against them.

At one time people asserted that f dX rv/ jssve Joarw
because I pos'essed no <^sd.'s, and cce-Jd ^.sd
Mho vicnld lend me a.T/i}J,*.g, Tr^ ss c-vlte 5 'oe, 7;^-’
surely impile: a very tcar.sv jra.C’eXcVe cf r v.-ssf-r fin.,.,,
and an iznorasice of ,Sov:k Las^r ge rc.sst*jvfs,
imaasne feat I could f;.od sso ere- rss.d/ tc Xsd, /♦ o-as
noti^tcfm-/r;etem. __ - ^

v.- 77dL* vrcyc 'X. CA.,

ia«t'£^s£5 keses, fee wst'. 5t V/e saX/c*

As' r-ot fee he;* ft ?,<nrcc>er Ate tt

doE fC rjr,r-. an fe.is ? Tf/t

fu*tr* ocas sc ^ removed feset rs^ tosogj^^ ^

feerifesnXn cf '

rirsads- ess^ feesn 'ef-ffe f

har.e£ Sntifes, ard r-"/ -

242 MEMOIRS OF NAPOLEON I

WEALTH IS NOT MERIT

A man cannot deduce merit from wealth. A rich man
is so often an idler without merit. Even a rich merchant
is wealthy only because he sells dear or steals. I do not
wish to defend the Agrarian Law, but I wish to have rich
men, for they are the only means by which the poor can
live. I do not desire, however, that anyone should derive
any special merit, or any political distinction from his
wealth. In these times any distinction of the kind would
be more unpopular than at any other period, for to-day
wealth is the result of theft or robbery. For who is rich,
after all ? The purchasers of national estates, the army
contractor, the thief! How could anyone call riches
acquired in this way a merit ?

AMBITION AND GENIUS

Ambition is the main driving power of men. A man
expends his abilities as long as he hopes to rise ; but when
he has reached the highest round, he only asks for rest.
I have created senatorial appointments and princely
titles, in order to promote ambition, and, in this way, to
make the senators and marshals dependent on me.

Genius is sometimes only an instinct which is inppable
of being perfected. In most cases the art of judging
correctly is perfected only through observation and
experience. A good thought is not always associated with
good judgment, but good judgment always presupposes
a good thought.

One can never set limits to one’s capacity. The man
who can satisfy his daily needs with thirty francs is richer
than the man who, with an income of 300,000 francs,
suffers from the want of something. Often the whole
difference between the wealth of two men consists in the
one being able to eat green peas a fortnight earlier than
the other.

I APPRECIATED THE NOBILITY

I have always taken pains to restore to the families (ff
the Nobility their former position of high respect and
splendour, and in my army there were many young men
of the Old Regime who conducted themselves very well.
In my Court, too, there were many ; but in this respect

THOUGHTS AND PLANS 243

I had to be very cautious, for every time that I touehed
this chord, people’s minds reared up like a horse when
one pulls the reins too tight. France needed an aristocracy,
but in order to lay its foundations time was necessary, and
a due regard to the associations of history. I created
princes and dukes, gave them fortunes and possessions,
but on account of their humble origin I could not make
noblemen of tliem. In order to make the matter easier
1 tried as much as possible to connect them by marriage
with the old families, and, if the twenty years which I
asked for to complete France’s greatness, had been
granted me, I would have done much. Unfortunately,
Fate has decided otherwise.

INDUSTRY AND COMMERCE IN FRANCE

If I had not been overthrown I would have made a
complete change in the appearance of commerce as well
as of industry. I would have naturalised in France
sugar, indigo, cotton, and many otlicr things. And if we
had not been deprived of a large part of our colonics I
would have laid out large plantations in them.

The efforts of the French were extraordinary, prosperity
and progress were growing immeasurably, and yet the
English Ministers spread the report all over Europe that
we were wretched fellows and would soon fall back into
barbarism. So the Allies were extremely astonished
when they saw the working of our Constitution from
within, and the great ones were just as angry.

Enlightenment was simply making giant strides in
France. New ideas were cvcryivhcrc heard and pub-
lished, for we took pains to introduce science among the
people. I have been told, for instance, that the English
were accomplishing great things in chemistry. How nice !
To tell me, at this great distance, on which side of the
Channel the best chemists are to be found. I assert,
nevertheless, that the French possess ten times, and
perhaps a hundred times, as much chemical knowledge as
the English, because the different branches of industry
nowadays bring it along svith them. And that is a special
sign of my training. If I had been given time there would
soon have been no more mechanics in France, they’
would all have become artists.

244

MEMOIRS OF NAPOLEON I

SHOULD ONE WORK ON SUNDAY?

It is contradictory of the justice of Heaven to prevent
men, who have needs to satisfy on Sundays as well as on
the other days of the week, from working on Sunday in
order to earn their bread. A Government would only
have the right to enforce such a law when it distributed
bread gratis to all who had none. Besides, it is not a
failing of the French people to work too hard.

God has forced men to work, for he has not allowed
them to eiyoy any of the fruits of the earth without toil.
It is His will that they should work every day, for He has
given them needs which recur every day.

Fasting and the Sunday rest are very unimportant
rules. But what is essential for Church ordinances to
attain is this : not to disturb the social order, to do no
wrong to one’s neighbour, and not to abuse one’s freedom.

It is quite beyond doubt that the harder men work the
fewer vices there are.

ON THE CENSORSHIP

An enforced censorsliip is the right of preventing the
publication of ideas which disturb the peace, the interests,
and the good order of a State, but it must be made to suit
the age in which we live, and the circumstances in which
we find ourselves. From this point of view one can
distinguish three epochs ;

First we have the centuries of Barbarism where every-
body finds himself under the power of the Popes, and the
lordship of the clergy and monks. In those days every
kind of study had to be acquired in connection with the
ecclesiastical sciences. The encroachments of the Popes
and the clergy eventually so incensed the princes that they
rebelled. They tried to restrain the zeal of the clergy,
they encouraged science, and spread the study of the
classics. Circumstances favoured this plan. Learned
men with a knowledge of the wisdom of the ancient
Greeks and Romans had fled from the East, and were
welcomed by the Medicis and Francis I. Then appeared
literary works in which prejudices were not spared. Joseph
II was the last prince who fevoured the new and bold ideas.

Since then everything has changed. People no longer

THOUGHTS AND PLANS 245

feared the Popes and the clergy. Instead, people had_ to
beware of that false philosophy ■which submits everything
to analysis, falls into sophism, and replaces the old errors
by new ones. Perhaps it is on account of this fear that
the censorship compromises the true philosophy. On the
other Iiand, if the censorship did not forbid the works
which, while not directly attacking the State, offend
against its prevailing maxims, it would seem as if it
approved of them. Can one, for instance, allow a book to
be published which teaches that the world is in existence
for twenty thousand years, svithout offending all the
religions prevailing in France ?

The Christian religion is the national religion. Though
the Catliolics and Protestants arc of different opinions on
various points, they yet hold the same views on the main
doctrines. The State authority must therefore insist on
respect for the Christian religion. But would it have
acted thus if it had allowed the appearance of a book
which assigns to the world a longer existence than is
prescribed in Holy Writ ?

On the other hand, when the authorities do not approve
of any writings, one will not draw tlic same conclusions.
What would one do, for instance, in tlic case of a work
like The Origin of Religions by Dupuis ? Would the censor
allow the book to be printed ? In the ease of an affirmative
the censorship would express itself as being opposed to
religion. Should it have had tlic power of preventing the
printing? That would have been dangerous. But the
difficulty would have been much greata- stiii if tlic censor
were obliged to give a pronouncement on nice questions
of morals.

I agree svith a censorship which is the decision of a
voluntary court against whose judgments a man may
lodge a complaint in the Council of State in accordance
with the usual procedure. The censor will not interfere
in the case of documents directed against private indi-
viduals, for that is the affair of the Law Courts. But ^cat
freedom must be allowed to writings on religious questions,
so that the publication of useful truths may not be strangled
under the cloak of offence to religion. However, the
censorship will be inflexible in the case of documents
directed against the State.

246

MEMOIRS OF NAPOLEON I

ON EDUCATIONAL SYSTEMS

I should have liked to see an educational institution in
France in which professors, head masters, and teachers
would be brought into dose touch with each other.
Young men who devote themselves to study should have
the prospect of rising step by step to the highest offices in
the State. While the feet of this great teaching profession
.should, so to speak, be in the colleges, the head should he
in the Senate. At the same time, however, the principle
of celibacy would have to be obsciwed, that is to say, in
the sense that a teacher must not marry until he reaches
the age of twenty-hve or thirty, in other words, until he is
in receipt of a salary of 3000 or 4.000 francs, and has saved
sufficient money.

In the matter of education I felt that the Jesuits had
left a large gap. Yet I would not run the risk of setting
them up again, or any other community wliich was
under foreign control ; but I felt bound to organise the
education of the coming generation, and that in such a
way that their political and moral opinions could be
supervised.

Tliereforc I thought that we ought to introduce celibacy
into the teaching profession up to a certain point of time,
but not absolute celibacy, for it is beyond dispute that
marriage contributes greatly to social perfection.^ So long
as there is no teaching body with strong convictions there,
will be no well-defined political State. So long as one
does not learn from childhood whether one is to be a
republican or a monarchist, whether one is to be a believer
or an infidel the State will never form a nation. It will
rest on unsafe and insecure foundations and be exposed to
continual disorders and changes.

The elementary schools, the middle schools, and the
colleges are the three steps of the educational ladd^
which were first organised, besides the technical and
professional schools, namely : the Polytechnic, the Facul-
ties of Law and Medicine. The Faculties of Literature
and Oratory, on the other hand, have not yet been dealt
with.

The course of instruction in our schools is as follows .

First of all the child must learn to speak and write

THOUGHTS AND PLANS 247

properly. Every college secs to that, and there is surely
no well-educated man who has not been through the
Lower Si.\th. After speaking and writing comes arith-
metic, and higher mathematics. The higher educational
institutions also take care Jo provide special classes for the
teaching of advanced arithmetic and mechanics in all
their branches. Next come the elements of chronology,
geography, and history.

Thus, by means of the three grades of this course of
instruction, the svell-to-do citizen may have passed his
Rhetoric Class (Lower Sixth), his Mathematics Class, and
will have acquired a knowledge of geography, chronology,
and history. A youth who leaves college at sixteen has
thus a knowledge, not onW of his own language and the
classics, as well as the diflerent branches of rhetoric and
its degrees, the means to be used for rousing or calming
the emotions, in short, everything that is taught in a
literary course, but he also knows the chief epochs of
history, the main branches of geography, can besides
calculate and survey, possesses a general knowledge of the
most prominent natural phenomena, tlic elements of the
laws of equilibrium, and the movements of solid and
liquid bodies.

If he tvishes to become a larvyer, to adopt a military or
clerical career, if he intends to be a learned professor, a
geographer, an engineer, or a land surveyor, he has
received in all these eases the general and special educa-
tion which he requires for the continuation of the study
needed in his profeslon.

If he wishes to devote Iiimscif to military handicraft, to
enter the Engineer corps or the Artillery, he goes into the
Polytechnic. What he learns heri is of course only the
corollary of what he has been learning in his elementary
mathematical studies, but the acquired knowledge must
be developed and applied ; he leams horv to grasp the
various branches of metaphysics. It is no longer merely
a question of culture, as in the colleges, but of mastering
a science.

The Observatory is another scientific technical
institution.

The Natural History Museum may also be considered
as belonging to a certain extent to this class, because there

248 MEMOIRS OF NAPOLEON I

exists in fact a similarity between the manner of compar-
ing the different kinds of loiowledge acquired and tliat by
which botany and other natural sciences are learned. If
it is possible to acquire in the colleges an elementary
knowledge of botany, natural history, chemistry, and
astronomy, that implies after all only general culture, for
those first ideas arc not sufficient to make a botanist, a
chemist, or an astronomer.

Are there sufficient tecimical schools to-day for the
exact sciences ? Has this branch, besides that of general
culture, been treated in a thorough and satisfactory
manner ? These are questions which the Minister for
Home Affairs is in a position to put to the test, in case it
has not yet been done. After tlie technical college come
the Faculties of Law and Medicine. They have been
organised wdth special care, and nothing further need be
added. These two faculties are unique of their kind, for
nobody \vill study them \viio does not intend to practise
the profession to which they are unavoidably necessaiy, ^

In general, neither the primary education, which, in
order to be sufficiently exhaustive, must include all the
elements of the greater part of human knowledge,^ nor
that college training ^vhich places young men in a position
to enter any profession %vhen they have reached the
necessary age, has the same rights and authority as the
professional schools. On the contraiy, and quite specially,
science alone, in all its profundity, can make out of an
educated young man a useful member of society.

From what has been said above it foUows that by a
Professional College one does not mean an educational
institution but a college for men who intend devoting
themselves to one or other of the learned professions or
some special branch of knowledge. It follows further ffiat
all institutions which are only , elementary, not scientific,
cannot have the same rights and authority as a technical
or professional college.

The Minister would like to see faculties of literature ,
if, however, the above-mentioned course of studies ims
been made, it is difficult to understand what is meant by
a Faculty of Literature. People wish to learn eloquence
and the art of poetry. But what more can be taught on
the subject of oratory and poetry than that which a youth

' THOUGHTS AND PLANS 249

learns in’his Rlictoric Class (Sixth Form) ? Only a few
montlis are needed to grasp the essence of poetry, and to
learn how to analyse a speech ; the whole of eloquence
consists in being able to write well in prose or verse.
Tlicrc is nothing in this art which is not already learned
in tlic upper schools. We are taught to write correetly,
to appreciate the great models, to develop the rules for
the composing of a tragedy or a comedy, an epic or a
Ijiric, but we arc not taught how to become authors of
plays, poerns, and jongs. The creative talent in literature,
exactly as in music and painting, is a purely individual
gift ; it depends on personal abilities svhose development
may he favoured by mccial circumstances or by the
manners and customs of an epoch. In these creations of
the mind the highest .accomplishments arc the result of
intellect and genius acting straight away and of their own
impulse.

We have not overtaken the Greeks cither in tragedy,
comedy, or epic svriiinCT, for they still remain our proto-
types, while, on the other hand, the exact sciences have
acfvanced a step toivards enlightenment every century.
All this is so well understood that it never occurs to a

professor of rhetoric to explain the main outlines of the
different svays in svhich the mind may be exercised.
Lectures arc given and learned treatises arc written,
camples arc quoted and models criticised ; svhether all
this takes place in an athcnium or in a sa/on, svhcrc
Udics and great scholars Mscmblc, it is all the sarnc, they
are nothing but great literary coffee-houses. Arc the
trorla of the ancient or modem masters cridciscd here by
any chance ? Tlicy take good care not to do that. Con-
tequcnlly, I cannot unoerstand the signuicancc of a
litcraty Faculty, except in the sense of a Society, a ialon,

« wen an Academy, where anybody may give lectures.
llBt, at least, would be inlelligiblc, not m connection
wth education in the true sense of the word,

”!«tttty 10 any given profession, hut rathrf “
fte 7 mcmtil If society. In

the possibility of not ^'""8 .'’S and a good

a™' £r,i; siS- ^ '

'“rio ensure this.

250 MEMOIRS OF NAPOLEON I

The poetic art is born of society. Society, which can
progress only with the help of public tranquillity and the
individual prosperity of a country, is alone able to lead
poets back to good taste, it alone can restore the sweet
grace and charm which adorn literature and the arts.
For the rest poetry is an art that pays so well that the
Government does not need to intervene. For instance,
when a poet composes a tragedy or a comedy, a farce or
an opera, a romance or an elegy, he is always rewarded
by the praise of society, by the applause of the public
which he entertains and interests. A seat in the Academy
is^ the true means of stimulating emulation, because it
gives the poet at the same time a title in the State. Was
Corneille ever in high favour at Court? Did the dis-
tinctions which were conferred on Racine ever influence
his work ? Or were the honours showered on him not a
hindrance to the flight of his genius ? In general, every
kind of creative work which only requires taste and
inclination, and is accessible to all, has no need of State
support. But should it ever happen to be necessary to
bestow complimentary distinctions on a contemporary
poet, our Government will not refuse to do it. Why, for
instance, should a few poets not be appointed as co-ordi-
nate members of the Theatre frangais ” with an honorary
title, and awarded with this title pensions and the right of
passing judgment on plays about to be produced ? Such
an arrangement already exists, it is true, in the Opera
House. But it ought to be treated in a special and com-
plimentary manner. In this way various authors might
be very highly honoured. It is a mistake, however, to
think that poets can educate us. In what does the art of
administration, the art of statesmanship in a ruler consist .
Surely in knowing how to grant lustre and draw attention
to good works. A ruler must be able to write other things
besides laws, he must understand above all how
For instance, several beautiful odes have appeared. Why
are their authors not recommended to the special att^tion
of the public ? Why are poets not given that connd^co
in themselves which encourages them, brightens their
efforts, and spurs them on to higher accomphshmen s .
The reason why Italy possessed so many good poets wa
simply because it included a crowd of small Courts an

THOUGHTS AND PLANS 251

rival societies. Besides, one famous man often produces
a second one. Racine and Boilcau probably only became
famous because Corneille preceded them. Very likely
Laharpe and Marmontel, and many other important men
in our literature owe their efforts, nay, their talents even
to Voltaire’s success. Richelieu’s critique of Le Cid, a
critique which holds good to this day, has doubtlKS had
a good influence. The conduct of the Minister in this
affair may appear to the public as the effect of the basest
passions. That may be true, but it is just as probable
that it is not so. Why should we not assume that he
wished by that public discussion to rouse people’s minds
to the ennobling of their language and taste ?

Our newspaper critics might strive after the same goal,
if they were not often influenced by hatred, oftencr still by
a satirical mind, and always by the desire of entertaining
idle people ; they arc never actuated by the principle of
enlightening the public.

TAcrrus WAS not a creat iiistowan

Tacitus was of course a clever painter of his time, a
bold and seducing colourist, but it was all for effect.
History will not tolerate illusions j it must enlighten and
instruct, not merely sketch impressionable pictures. Taci-
tus has not sufficiently developed the causes and inward
motives of events. He has not sufficiently probed the
mysteries of actions and convictions, tlieir connections
with each other, to give a basis for the just and unpreju-
diced judgment of posterity. Such a judgment must
take men as they were in the midst of tlic times in which
they lived and under the circumstances which governed
their actions. One must clearly perceive how every
mode of action developed under the given circumstances,
and how it was settled by conditions. The Roman
emperors were not nearly such bad men as Tacitus
depicts them. In this respect I very much prefer
Montesquieu. He is fairer and keeps closer to the trutli.

Good tragedy must be considered as the worthiest
school of great writers. Considered from a certain point
of view it stands higher than history. Even with the best
history only a comparatively small effect is
When a man is alone he is only weakly

252 MEMOIRS OF NAPOLEON I

when many people are together the impressions received
are stronger and more lasting. I assert that the historian
Tacitus has always left me cold. Can there be a greater
and unfairer disparager of mankind ? He finds criminal
motives even in the simplest actions. He makes the
greatest rogues of all the emperors, only with the object of
^hancing the genius with which they were permeated.
One is right in saying that his Annals are not a history of
the Empire, but only a list of Rome’s historical writers.
They are nothing but a catalogue of accusations, impeach-
ments, and men who open their veins in their baths. He,
who is continually tall^g about informers, is himself the
greatest denouncer ! And what a style I What impene-
trable darkness ! I am not a great Latin scholar, but the
obscurity of Tacitus is cleared up in some Italian and
French translations, which I have read. And I conclude
from them that it is peculiar to him, and that it is bora of
what is called his genius and also of his style. It is insepar-
able from his mode of expression, because it lies in his
manner of comprehension. I had heard him praised
because he drives terror into tyrants. He inspires them
with fear of the people, and that is a great evil for the
people themselves.

HOW NEWSPAPERS OUGHT TO BE

The existence of a good newspaper of instructive
criticism, well intentioned, unprejudiced, and free from
every kind of offensive coarseness, which is a characteristic
of our present-day newspapers, would be very advantageous
and desirable.

Our present news-sheets unfortunately do not criticise
with the intention of dissuading indifferent writers from
following the literary profession, nor of encouraging those
of promising merit, but everything that th^
calculated to discourage and destroy. Perhaps the
Minister for Home Affairs might intervene to put an en

must always remember that when one has
managed to steer clear of one rock he is
another. It might even happen that ^ on
ventured to criticise anythmg, that one jj

not less corruptive misuse of eulog)', and finally

THOUGHTS AND PLANS 253

the authors of the bad literature with which the country
is flooded might be convinced at last that they were
authors of Rcnius.

I have already many times complained of newspapers,
hut I think that they have never yet beep given sufliciently
positive orders. The following instructions ought to have
been given :

The editors must not publish any news, whether out of
foreign newspapers, or from foreign correspondents,
which makes reference to my actions. And that is not
difficult to carry out. When, for instance, a foreign
newspaper states that I have been to the theatre, the
French news-sheets must not repeat it. Or the paper
asserts that 1 had signed a treaty, or anything of the kind,
then they must not report it, for any affair concerning the
Government must not be touched on by foreign countries.
If my instructions were followed, the half of my complaints
would be unnecessary. It is ridiculous when one teams,
for instance, through a German newspaper, that I had
sent Gobelins to the Emperor of Austria, and it is quite
obvious that the journalist who draws such news from a
German news-sheet, is a simpleton and not really fit for
his job.

1 READ A CREAT DEAD

During the Consulate I read everything that appeared.
My secretary used to place the works before me every
morning with a few remarks. Everything that appeared
was nasty and repulsive. Wliat a difference between the
litcra^ products of to-day and those which appeared in
Voltaire's time I The more I read Voltaire tlie better 1
like him. He was a man who was always sensible ; he
was neither a charlatan nor a fanatic. I even like his
works on histom, although they arc attacked. La Pucelle
(the Maid of Orleans) is not for young people, but it
brightens up older people of mature age. Up to the age
of sixteen I would have fought for Rousseau against all
the friends of Voltaire. To-day it is the opposite. Since
I have seen the East Rousseau is repugnant to me. The
wild man without morals is a dog.

The JVeiD Hllolse is, after all, a work which has been
■written with much warmth and will always

254 MEMOIRS OF NAPOLEON I

young people^s book. I read the book at the a?e of nine

StaePs book. I have not yet
read the latter, however, but I hope to do so.

DOES FRIENDSHIP EXIST?

Friendship is only an empty word. I love nobody.

TV?! ^ .^7 brothers. Joseph perhaps a

little, and if I hke him, it is from habit, because he is my

elder brother. Duroc ? Why, certainly, I like him too.
But why ? I like his character. He is cold, solemn,
severe ; and then Duroc never sheds tears.

As far as I am concerned it is a matter of indifference
to me, for I know that I have no real friends. So long as
I remain what I am I can apparently make as many as
I like.

We should let women weep, that is their affair ; but I
won’t have any weak sentimentality. A man must be
strong and have a strong character, otherwise he should
not occupy himself with war or statecraft. ^

A NIGHT ON THE BATTLEFIELD

It was a beautiful, calm, moonlight night. Suddenly a
dog, which had been hiding under the clothes of a dead
man, came up to us with a mournful howl, and then
disappeared again immediately into his hiding-place. He
would lick his master’s face, then run up to us again, only
to return once more to his master. It seemed as if he were
asking both for help and revenge. Whether it was_ the
mood of the moment, whether it was the place, the time,
the weather, or the action itself, or whatever it was, it is
certainly true that nothing on any battlefield ever made
such an impression on me. I involuntarily remamed
still, to observe the spectacle. This dead man, I said to
myself, has perhaps friends, and he is lying here abandone
by all but his dog ! What a lesson nature teaches us Dy
means of an animal !

WORK IS MY ELEMENT— MY HABITS

Work is my element. I was bom and made
I have recognised the limits of my eyesight and o my g ?

but never the limits of my working power. ^«r>rTate

When I wish to interrupt a thing I close the appropn

THOUGHTS AND PLANS 255

drawer of my brain and open anotlier. My thoughts are
never intermingled, nor do they disturb and tire me.
When I want to sleep I simply close all the drawers, and
give myself up completely to slumber.

I always dined alone in the large drawing-room. My
steward has a small table of about a foot in diameter
placed for me, and served me with a soup, a roast chicken,
a bottle of Chambertin, and a cup of coffee. Break-
fast lasted ten minutes. The director of the Napoleon
Museum, Denon, Chief Architect Fontaine, the best
painter, David, Talma, whom I looked on as the greatest
tragic actor, Lcsucur, Pacr, the Minister Deeres, Signora
Grassini, whose singing 1 liked very much, and Made-
moiselle Mars, who had shown such great talent during the
first years in the role of heroine, used to come in for a chat
with me at breakfast-time.

I have never worn armour, never changed my room ;
I neither had sentries inside my palace, nor had its doors
locked. When necessary, the adjutant on duty entered
my bedroom from one side, my valet from the other.
Moreover, I had ncitltcr pistols, nor a sword, nor a
musket in my bedroom or my private study. Louis XVIII
is ten times more closely surrounded by his guards than
I was. The Empress Maria Louisa often told me that she
had never seen a less distrustful, less careful man, a man
who took so few measures of precaution, than myself.
I used generally to go to the theatre when nobody expected
me there. At parades I used to walk through a gate in
the railings surrounding the Tuilcrics, into the middle of
the Place du Carrousel, when I was always surrounded by
a great crowd of people, handing me petitions. Escorted
by two officers, an equerry, and a page, I often visited the
factories in the suburbs. There 1 always had an enormous
crowd round me.

CHAPTER XII

YEARS OF SUFFERING : ST. HELENA, 1815-1821

MY WORK

I N whatever way I may be distorted, suppressed, or
mutilated, my enemies will find it a difficult matter
to make me disappear completely ; for actions speak,
they shine like the sun.

I have stopped up the abyss of anarchy, and produced
order out of chaos. I have cleansed the Revolution,
ennobled the nations, strengthened the throne. I have
encouraged all talents, rewarded all meritorious services,
and have advanced the boundaries of fame. Of what
could I be accused from which an author would be unable
to defend me ? Is it my intentions ? He holds sufficient
material with which to acquit me. My despotism ? But
he will prove that the Dictatorship was unavoidably
necessary. That I put an end to freedom ? But he will
demonstrate that licence, anarchy, great confusion were
standing and threatening on the doorstep. That I was
too fond of war ? He will show that I was always acting
on the defensive. That I was striving after world monarchy .
That was the accidental result of circumstances, and^our
enemies led me towards it themselves step by step. That
I was ambitious ? Yes, the historian will find me gnnjy 0
ambition, but surely the greatest and loftiest ambition
that ever was ! — namely, to restore and consecrate
the kingdom of reason, the full development, the who c
enjoyment of all human abilities I And here the writer 0
history will perhaps feel compelled to regret that sue a
ambition has not been satisfied, not fulfilled.

I PROTEST AGAINST BEING MADE A PRISONER

On board the Bellerophon, on the 4th of Aug“f >

I wrote the following to Lord Keith ■ ^ . — -n

solemnly protest in the face of Heaven and be o

256

YEARS OF SUFFERING : ST. HELENA 257

against the force which is done to me, and the violation of
tny most sacred rights, in arbitrarily controlling my
person and liberty. I came on board the Delkrofhon of my
otvn accord, and am consequently not the prisoner but
the guest of England. I have even come at the instance
of Captain Maitland, who told me that he had orders
from his Government to receive me and carry me and my
suite to England, if it were agreeable to me. Acting on
this in good faith I have placed myself under English
protection.”

I felt as though I were by the English fireside as soon
as I was on board the Bellerophon. But if the Government
in ordering Captain Maitland to receive me and my suite,
only wished to set a trap for me ; it is a violation of
England’s honour and a disgrace to her flag.

If this transaction is really carried out, the English will
find it difficult to speak of their sincerity, their good laws,
and tlicir freedom. British probity will be buried for ever
in the hospitality of the BdUtophon.

But I appeal to history ; it will say that an enemy, who
waged war against the English people for twenty years,
voluntarily gave himself up to them m his misfortune and
sought shelter under their laws. Wiat clearer proof of his
confidence and esteem could he show them than this?
And what did England do in return for such a high-
minded action ? She pretended to hold out the hand of
hospitality to this enemy, and when he delivered himself
up in good faith, she sacrificed him.

I LEAVE THE BEIXEROPHON ON THE 7TH OF AUGUST, 1 815

When I left the BtlUrophon on the 7th of August, 1815,
the officers and crew of the ship were extremely angry at
the injustice of such a proceeding. With a perfectly calm
demeanour and a smile on my lips I walked across the
deck and descended into the sloop. Admiral Keith was
by my side. I stood for a moment before Captain Mait-
land and asked him to express my satisfaction to the
officers and crew for their attitude. As I saw that the
Captain was very distressed i^.said to him by way of
consolation : “ Posterity cannot accuse you in any way
for what has taken place, for you have been deceived just
as much as myself.”

258 IvlEMOIRS OF NAPOLEON I

■D hours I enjoyed the protection of the

Entish flag. We stopped in the inner harbours of Torbay
and Plymouth, and it ^vas only at this time, the 7th of
August, as we were about to go on board the KorfhumbeT-
land^ that Admiral Keith disarmed the Frenchmen. The
surrender of weapons is a _ characteristic sign of being
made prisoners of ■war. No weapons were demanded
from me.

THE FIRST YEARS OF EXILE

Arrived in St. Helena we thought at first that -^ve
should be lodged in Plantation House, a handsome
dwelling built by the East India Company for the
Governor. Connected ■wdth the house are a beaudful
garden, "water, and shade, things ■which are absolutely
necessary in a tropical climate, not merely for comfort,
but for bare existence. In the garden there are aromatic
plants close to some splendid oak trees. Besides this
dwelling the Governor possessed a prett}* house in James-
to’^sm itself, ^vliich he could have lived in, and this arrange-
ment "would have cost the State very little.

The Deputy Governor, Colonel Skelton, -svas Ii\dng in
Longwood at the time ^\dth his "^\dfe and family ; it took
them a fe-w days to move. Longwood was reall)' nothing
but a big badly built farmhouse "^vhich belonged to the
East India Company.

With the energ)* and good-will \vhich distinguished him,
Admiral Sir George Cockbum made his seamen procure
timber and other materials, and his carpenters and joiners
began to build a few ne^v living-rooms, almost all of ^\'ood
only, and to make the old rooms more or less fit for
habitation. All this caused a considerable outlay for a
place like St. Helena. In spite of that, all "^vho knew the
island maintained that I would be ver}* badly housed
after all, as there was no water and no trees in the vicwity.
There is, it is true, a species of tree there, but they are so
"wretched, as a ver}* strong ■^\dnd is continually blo'iv’mg,
which dries up the earth, and bums up the vegetaticm,
so that one could never lay out a vegetable garden in the

■vicinity of the house. ^ ,

During the time that Longivood "vvas being preparea
for us I stayed in The Briars," a prett}* house surrounde

YEARS OF SUFFERING •. ST. HELENA 259

by a garden. It consisted, first of a room of 15 to 17 feet
long, in which my camp-bed was placed ; here I used to
work, cat, and sleep ; secondly, of an adjoining ante-
room ; and, tliirdly, of an attic over this ante-room. In
these rooms Count Las Cases and his son lived. Count
Bertrand, his wife and family, besides General Gourgaud
were lodged in a boarding-house in Jamestown, from
which tlicy came and visited me occasionally.

“ The Briars ” is about a mile and a half away from the
town. The last part of the way forms a pleasant prome-
nade. About fifty paces from my cottage stands the house
occupied by the owner. He is a merchant named Balcombc.
Behind his house is a beautifully kept garden. The whole
plantation consisted of about a hundred acres. Mr.
Balcombc, an Englishman, has been resident in the
island for some years. His family consists of his wife and
two daughters. One is about fourteen years of age, and
the other sixteen. They have only come from England a
few months ago, where they were educated in a boarding-
school and have learnt French very well. These are the
girls about whom so much silly gossip and so many absurd
anecdotes have been published abroad nith the object of
amusing the public.

In “ The Briars ” I led somewhat the same life as on
board ship. I seldom left ray dwelling before four
o’clock in the afternoon. Then I used to go and walk for
an hour or two on the grass plot in front of the house.
The two girls above mentioned used also to come there
svith their mother. After chatting vdth tltem for a short
time I would return to my house for dinner. When the
meal was over I often went over to the Balcombcs’ and
played a game of whist with them.

During the two months that I lived in “ The Briars,”
I only left it once, namely, to visit Colonel Hudson, who
lived with his family in a small cottage at the foot of the
hill on which “ The Briars ” stood. There was a beautiful
view from the garden surrounding the house. On this
excursion I remained about a quarter of an hour chatting
with the Colonel, his wife, and their charming children.
During the time of my stay in “ The Briars,” I don’t
think that I had more than one conversation with Admiral
Cockburn. Probably he was surprised that I was so

26 o memoirs of napoleon I

badly accommodated. Very likely he learned too
through the natives, that I could have been better housed
elsewhere. In any case I never uttered a complaint. On
board the Northumberland^ we exiles had never the least
misunderstanding with the Admiral j but scarcely had
we been put on land when my companions changed their
attitude, perhaps from annoyance at being sent to such a
dreary spot as St. Helena, which is completely lacking in
all the amenities of life.

People relate^ to each other that Admiral Cockburn,
who used to give a ball occasionally, which was also
attended by some of the French, had sent me an invitation
card, but had received no answer, as he had directed it to
” General Bonaparte.’’ At that time it was related quite
privately — I don’t think the Admiral heard of it — that I
had said to Bertrand : “ Send this card to General
Bonaparte, from whom we have had the last news from
the battlefields of the Pyramids and by Mount Tabor.”
At these balls the elegance of the French ladies drew the
attention of all the English officers’ ladies.

When, towards the end of December i8i6, all the repairs
at Longwood were completed, our removal took place, to
the joy of all the French, as they were happy at the thought
of being united once more. About a fortnight afterwards
I paid them a visit, and found their dwellings comparatively
comfortable. Count Bertrand and his wife lived an
English mile away from Longwood in a small farmhouse
consisting of two small living-rooms and two attics ;
there was neither garden nor shade. It must be said that
it was the only available dwelling in the neighbourhood,
and that the choice of this cottage was in accordance with
Bertrand’s wish.

Workmen were continuously employed in building a
new house about fifty yards from Longwood for the
Bertrand family. Count Las Cases and General Gourgaud
occupied small cottages built of wood and covered
tarred paper following the custom of the island. I had
four rooms for my own use. They also built a bathroom
for me, until then an unheard-of luxury^ in this unhappy
island. Although Longwood was situated on the
unpleasantest part of the island, the house had, neverthe-
less, the great advantage of being built on a tablelan ,

YEARS or surriiRiNCi j s'l', iir>i,i',NA uin

which had a circumference of nhoiil fiim iir liv(i lini'lith
miles.

The climate of St. Ilelcn.'i h prrlmiii (he iil'nl t-'l/e-
ordinary in the world. It is at the n.iinr llni'' lillti ll liOlli i
and much colder than other phitet of (he n.iito lulllioh’,
In Longrvood the rooms must he he,((ed ihilUll', tly (m/(/th<i
of the year. Fesv days p.Ts v/ilhoiil r.iUt, ni/tl the Uoiin U
often surrounded Iry a thick mist, v/h;)e at the t-i/te •((//'/
two or three leases away, the trnMnt I//, it firf yjiih li/iil
is to be found in the Torrid j^//ie. Th' d.oop i>oirn
dj-scntcj^- which often carr^'^ av-ay m wy p'oj/l'.

262 MEMOIRS OF NAPOLEON I

dwelling I used to greet this girl and, without dismountiiig
from^ my horse, would speak a few "svords to her in bad
English. Tins was the material for Mr. Warden’s episode
of Miss Robinson.

I used to dine with my officers and their ladies at eight
or half-past eight in the evening. Colonel Skelton and
his^ -wife, who formerly occupied Longwood, used often to
visit me and shared in our evening meal. The society of
Mrs. Skelton, who had been educated in France, and
spoke very good French, was uncommonly agreeable to
me. I also received in Longwood frequent \dsits from the
officers of the 53rd Regiment, "who were ver}’^ flattered at
the reception ■svdiich I gave them. In Longwood there
was no guard except a post of thirty men at the entrance
to the enclosure. Nobody from outside could enter
without the permission of Admiral Sir George Bingham,
the Governor, and of General Bertrand, -when the menta-
tion came from the French. As for strangers, they evere
sent to General Bertrand, who fixed the day and hour at
which I would receive them : usually this took place a
day or two after their request. A pass given by him sufficed,
and by means of this paper they were free to visit Long-
wood, as long as they remained in the island. The
Admiral, who kne^v all the persons -svho had been pro-
vided -svith these passes, had regulated everything in such
a way that no breaches of the rules could occur, and
everybody "^vas satisfied -^vuth the arrangements made by
him.

Small military posts had been placed at various points
on the surrounding hill-side, so that the exiles could take
walks of five or six miles mthout any mihtar)’^ escort. In
spite of that, if they '^\dshed to go out of boimds, they had
to be accompanied by a British officer, and also whenever
they went into the to^sn. Few of them, except Madame
Bertrand, or Generals Montholon and Gourgaud, made
use of the permission to go into the to’^sn. As far as I v as
concerned, I avoided everything, so as not to be reproached
for 'wishing for any kind of favour from the British Govern-
ment, which ■would then have had a claim on my gratitude.
Many were of opinion that we should be allowed to roam
over the whole island, apart from the town of Jamesto^^n
and the coast, seeing that it was extremely easy to gnar

YEARS OF SUFFERING : ST. HELENA 263

such a small island, by placing along the coast fourteen or
fifteen detachments each of eighteen to twenty men, at
fairly short intervals, so as to be able to communicate
svith each other at any time svithin a few minutes, the
coast, moreover, being already so well protected by the
British cruisers.

Three Commissioners of the Allied Governments, an
Austrian, a Frenchman, and a Russian arrived in St.
Helena on the 17th of June, 1817, escorted by Admiral
Malcolm, on the frigates ChaUau~Ntuf, and Oronte. A
few week aftenvards, the new Governor, Sir Hudson
Lowe, reported their arrival in Longtvood, and also
informed us of the treaty concluded on the 2nd of August,
1815, between Great Britain, Austria, Russia, and Prussia.
Count Montliolon received orders to protest against this
treaty, which he did in a letter in which I had it made
clear that I was not the prisoner of England ; that, after
my abdication, I had come to England of my own accord
with tlie intention of living there as a private citizen under
the protection of the English laws. I further made the
declaration that there was no cause or reason for the
violation of these rights, that, although I happened to be
at the time in the power of the British nation, I had never
been a prisoner of Austria, Russia, or Prussia, that these
States had never had any power, actual or legal, over me.
Finally I emphasised the fact that the treaty was purely
and simply an alliance of the four great States of Europe
for the suppression of a single man. The protest also
spoke of the different treatment which I should in all
probability have received from other countries, if I had
fallen into their hands.

The letter also mentioned the uselessness of sending the
Commissioners, who apparently had no right to interfere
in the proceedings on the island. It also spoke of the
severity with which I was treated in being banished to a
rock two thousand miles from Europe in a climate
extremely bad for the health, this condition being made
worse by the restrictions which the new Governor was
laying on me, by forbidding me to have any kind of
intercourse ivith the natives, even with the officers, thus
making of Longwood a veritable prison.

In the letter I complained also of the harshness of

264 MEMOIRS OF NAPOLEON I

depriving the exiles of newspapers, holding back the
books intended for them, and of the impossibihty of free
correspondence with the people at home. The letter
ended with an answer to the question put to me by the
Governor whether I was willing to add £10,000 or
£12,000 to the £8000 granted by the British Government
for my support. I declared that I was willing to pay all
my expenses, on condition that I w^as allow^ed to corre-
spond with my bankers without ha\ing my correspondence
controlled by the Governor and his men.

It seems as if Lord Bathurst, in one of his notes to the
Governor, had fixed the whole of the expenses for Long-
w^ood at £8000 per annum, wiiich were divided as follows :
£500 for the house steward, £500 for the transport of
provisions from the town to Long^vood, £730 for the
orderly officers and the surgeon in Long\vood, £1000 for
the upkeep of the house, as it is old and in constant need of
repairs, altogether £2730 ; so that only £5270 was left
for all the other expenses, w^hich, considering the enor-
mous cost of provisions and otlier necessary thmgs, would
go about as far as £1000 per annum in England.

The Governor, however, understood that this sum -was
quite insufficient, and estimated the expenditure at
£19,000 or £20,000 per annum. He demanded from
Count Montholon, through a letter dated the 17th
August, 1816, the difference bet^veen this sum and the
£8000 granted by tlie Government. To this demand I
replied in tlie above-mentioned letter. Although the
Governor was ^villing eventually to grant an additional
£4000, the quantity of supplies to be defivered to us w^'as
reduced, and three of my most necessary ser\^ants '^vere
dismissed. As the stew-ard of my household declared to
me tliat one-tliird few-er provisions were being delivered
than w^ere necessary, I ordered a portion of my plate to be
broken up and sold to tlie value of £1000. The plate was
vQvy beautiful and the work was ^vorth four times as nmcii
as the metal itself. Every one in St. Helena
acquire a portion of it, and several captains of the has
India Company offered up to ten times the pnee m

order to obtain a wffiole set.

The foreign Commissioners Tvere not adnuttea
Longwood, although it w^as stated that, while refusmg to

YEARS OF SUFFERING : ST. HELENA 265

receive them as Commissioners, I was willing to acknow-
ledge them as strangers and treat them with the usual
formalities. It seems that, under these circumstances,
Sir Hudson Lowe and the Commissioners have rratten
home to their Governments, and arc still waiting for an
answer.

Shortly aftcnv.ards I rvrotc a letter to Count Las Cases ;
it was before his departure for the Cape. Tliey say
Las Cases had entrusted a native of the island, who intended
travelling to England, svith a letter addressed to a lady in
London, and containing complaints against tlic Governor.
But in fact this letter contained notliing which could not
have been openly written at any time. That was con-
firmed by people who read the letter at the Governor’s
house.

In my letter I only expressed regret at tlic treatment
which Las Cases had received. Besides, this letter con-
tained nothing that I had not already said in six or seven
other letters, nothing about any plot, at the most, com-
plaints against the outrages which I had received from
the Governor, Sir Hudson Lowe. The letter concludes
with the hope that, however necessary the society of Las
' Cases was to me, I was the cause of his returning to
Europe, so that he might forget the hardships I had
inllictcd on him. I charged him to embrace Maria
Louisa and my son on my behalf, in ease he should be
able to find access to them. Finally, I expressed the hope
that a just Providence would soon end my life, whose last
moments would cover the author of these persecutions
with shame.

Soon aftersvards Sir Hudson Lowe thought fit to
introduce a new rule, as a result of which the original
boundaries of our territory were reduced by two-thirds,
and with the absurd e.xcusc that I never, since my arrival,
made use of my right to visit the whole district. Hence-
forth the French were only allowed to use the high road.
They were forbidden to turn either to the left or the right
— and even the English vdll scarcely believe it — I and
every member of my suite were forbidden to speak to
anyone we met, whoever he might be, except to exchange
the greetings and signs of politeness customary among
civilised people.

266 MEMOIRS OF NAPOLEON I

The Governor forbade every person who had a paper of
admission to visit me, to speak to any person of my suite,
even tliough it was specially noted on the paper. So'
when I received a stranger who did not speak French, I
could not, according to this silly and insulting rule, send
for Las Cases or any other of my people to act as inter-
preter. At sunset sentries were placed all round the
garden to prevent me from taking a short walk in it. In
the Tropics, moreover, that is the only moment, especially
in a place without shade like Longwood, where one can
do this without being exposed to inquisitive looks and
every sort of investigation. During the daytime a sentry
^vas posted at a spot from wJiich one could oversee every-
thing that was going on in the garden, so that even during
the daytime I could not go out wdthout being exposed to
the observation of even the commonest soldier. In a
letter directed to Bertrand we were forbidden to hold any
kind of communication, even by word of mouth, with the
natives.

After the introduction of these restrictions I declared
that not merely all laws, but all respect and consideration
were being violated, and I refused in future to receive the
Governor in my house, as I had to look on liim henceforth
as only a jailer.

It is regrettable that Sir Hudson Lowe gave way to such
violent and oppressive measures, which are in complete
contradiction to what ^vas openly said in Parliament.
But the defenders of the Ministers assert that, even if it is
admitted that the latter had confirmed the measures
already in force for nine months, and had ordered no
new restrictions, the Governor must have acted on his
own responsibility, in a way that does him little honour,

and has no justification. , .

There is no doubt that five-sixths of the restrictioi^
imposed on us are merely oppressive and superficial, and
against the wishes of the nation. It is likewise incompre-
hensible why the Ministers refused to grant the Governor
the sum of ;^20,ooo, which he considered necessary, and
which he had even asked for. Surely they should
granted this amount and not accepted my
plate was sold at the Governor’s order, who had here a
political motive and wished to prevent the silver articles

YEARS OF SUFFERING ; ST. HELENA 267

from finding their way into the hands of purchasers who
would regard every piece as a valuable relic.

In any ease tlic expense of my captivity in St. Helena
costs the British Government about £250,000 per annum,
through — — ‘i- — a Lieutenant-General as
Govemc ■ ■ a numerous general staff,

various . md artillery, and a strong

squadron of ships. Apart from these expenses, the
restrictions imposed on the ships arc a burden on the
trade with India, and cause much greater losses tlian the
expenses themselves. And for what purpose is all this ?
That I shall perchance have greater freedom in my
prison ? I should feel more comfortable as a prisoner in
any house in England or Scotland than in St. Helena,
even if I possessed the whole island as a prison, and for
the following reasons : In the first place a tropical climate
— and the climate of St. Helena is particularly unhealthy —
is not to be compared in any way with the climate of
Europe ; secondly, because in St. Helena it is only with
the greatest difiiculty tliat one can obtain even fairly
good provisions. In an English prison the inmates have
newspapers, a library, and frequent visits from their
relatives. In St. Helena one is deprived of almost every-
thing. It is true that 1 500 volumes have been sent to the
island, but 1500 volumes arc not sufficient for people who
have been instructed to occupy themselves with the study
of literature and the sciences. 20,000 volumes would not

balance the advantage of having all the book one wishes
for in Europe ivithin twenty-four hours. Finally, in
England one would receive news from one’s family and
friends, which is almost impossible in St. Helena. Counts
Bertrand and Montholon, for instance, have not received
a line for months, and can consequently not occupy
themselves with their ordinary affairs, or their private
interests. For several months I have ceased to leave my
dwelling which consists only of four small, badly built,
and unhealthy rooms, in such a dilapidated house that it
would be difficult to find a worse one in England.

268

MEMOIRS OF NAPOLEON I

THE STATE OF MY HEALTH GETS WORSE

On the nth, 12th, 14th, and i6th of August, 1810,
attempts were made for the first time to enter my house,
which until then had always been respected. I have
opposed this act of violence by having all my doors
locked. Under these circumstances I repeated the oft-
made declaration that anyone who tried' to cross my
doorstep would only do it over my corpse. I have given
up everything, and for three years I have been living in
retirement in six small rooms, in order to escape abuse
and insults. ^ If my jailers should be so base as to grudge
me even this privacy, it would be equivalent to leaving
me no refuge but the grave.

For two years I have been suffering from chronic
inflammation of the liver, a disease peculiar to this country.
For a year I have been deprived of my physicians,
Dr. O’Meara (since July 1818) and Dr. Stokoe (since
January 1819). Since then I have had various bad attacks
which compelled me to take to my bed for 14 to 20 con-
secutive days. To-day, when I have had to endure one
of the most violent of these attacks, which has already
kept me in bed for nine days, with no other remedies than
rest, dieting, and baths, I have been disturbed again, as
during the last six days, with all sorts of threats and abuse,
to which I shall never submit, as the Prince Regent,
Lord Liverpool, and the whole world know only too well.
As they daily try to humiliate and insult me, I can only
repeat the declarations so often made already, that I have
taken no notice of any sort — and shall not take any-yof
dispatches or letters whose contents I consider abusive,
and offensive to good form. I have not ordered any
answer to be made, nor shall I order any. All offensive
letters directed to me I have thrown into the fire, or shall
do so.

ON THE RIGHT TO COMMIT SUICIDE, lOTH AUGUST, 1 820

Has a man any right to take his own life ? _ Certainly,
if his death does not injure anybody and Ins hie is a

burden to him.

But when is life a burden to a man
him nothing but pain and suffering.

? When it offers
As both pain and

YEARS OF SUFFERING : ST. HELENA 269

worry change every moment, there is no moment in
which a person has the right to lull himself. This moment
only comes in the hour of his dc.ath, as iie is only then
convinced that his life has been nothing but a chain of
pain and sufiering.

There is probably no person who has not felt the wish
some time or other in his life to kill himself, when a prey
to some affliction of the mind. But there is also nobody
who has not been angry with himself a short time after-
wards for his lack of courage.

The man who took hts life on Monday, certainly
wanted still to preserve it on Saturday ; and yet one can
only kill oncscli^oncc. Life eonsists of the past, the present,
and the future. If it is only burdensome to him, however,
for the present, he is sacrificing the future. But the
sufferings of one day do not give him the right to give up
his whole life. Only the man whose whole life is nothing
but pain, and who knows definitely — which however is
impossible — that it will always be so, has the right to kill
himself

ADVICE FOR MY SON, SPRING 1 82 1
My son must not think of avenging my death ; he
should rather learn a lesson from it. He must always
bear in mind the remembrance of what I have accom-
plished ; he is alwajs to remain, like myself, every inch
a Frenchman. He must strive to rule in peace. If he
were to try to begin my svars all over again out of a mere
desire to imitate me, and svithout the absolute necessity
for it, he would be nothing but an ape. To begin my
work over again would be to assume that I had accom-
plished nothing at all. To conrolctc it, on the other hand,
svill be to prove the strength of its foundations, to explain
the complete plan of the edifice begun. Such work as
mine is not done tivice in a century. I have been com-
pelled to restrain and tame Europe svith my arms ; to-
day it must be convinced. I have saved the Revolution
as it lay dying, I have cleansed it of its crimes, and have
held it up to the people shining with fame. I have
inspired France and Europe with new ideas which ivill
never be forgotten. May my son make everything
blossom that I have sown ! May he further develop all

270 MEMOIRS OF NAPOLEON I

the elements of prosperity which lie hidden in French
soil ! At this cost he may yet become a great ruler.

The Bourbons cannot last. When I am dead, a reaction
in my favour mil set in everywhere, even in England.
For my son that mil mean a fine inheritance. It is quite
possible that the English, in order to wipe out the memory
of their persecutions, will favour the return of my son to
France. But, in order to five on good terms with England,
her trade interests must, above all things, be borne in
mind. Only two possibilities are acceptable, either to
fight England, or to share the world’s trade mth her.
And this second condition is the only possible one to-day.
In France the foreign question will have for a long time
the upper hand over home affairs. I leave to my son a
sufficient legacy of strength and sympathy to continue my
work, but only mth the weapons of a lofty and conciliatory
diplomacy. His position in Vienna is deplorable. Will
Austria hberate Hm unconditionally? Francis I really
found himself in a critical position ; the French nation
suffered no loss from that. My son must never ascend the
throne by means of foreign influence. His aim must be,
not merely to reign, but to deserve the approbation of
posterity. If possible, he should keep in close touch mth
my family. My mother belongs to the matrons of ancient
times ; Joseph and Eugene can give him good advice ;
Catherine and Hortense are very superior women. If he
remains in exile he may marry one of my nieces. However,
if France recalls him he is to take as wdfe a Russian prin-
cess ; for the Russian Court is the only one where policy
is ruled by family ties. The connection into which he
will enter must have for its object the enhancement of
French influence abroad, and not the introduction of
foreign influence into the Council of State. The French
people are extremely easy to rule if one does not go about
it in the wrong way. There is no tiling comparable to
their clear and quick understanding. They distinguish
directly between those who are working for the nation,
and those who are working against it._ One must, how-
ever, always speak in sympathy with their feelings,
otherwise they will be tortured with anxiety. A Kind o
ferment sets in wfiich soon surges up and effervpces.

My son will arrive in France after the disorders oi t c

YEARS OF SUFFERING : ST. HELENA 271

civilian population. He has only one party to fear, that
of the Duke of Orleans. This party has been germinating
and growing for a long time. He must disregard all
parties and only esteem the mass of the people. With the
exception of those who have betrayed their country, he
must forget all the former relationships of men, and
reward talent, merit, and services wherever he finds them.

MY REAL TREASURES

Would you like to know what arc my real, and very
considerable treasures ? Tlicy shine like the sun. They
arc : tlic fine harbours of Antwerp and Flushing, which
can contain the most numerous fleets of war and protect
them against the monsters of the sea ; the works on the
harbours of Dunkirk, Lc Havre, and Nice ; the gigantic
basin of Cherbourg, and the improvement of the harbour
of Venice, the fine roads from Wescl to Hamburg, from
Antwerp to Amsterdam, from Maycncc to Metz, from
Bordeaux to Biwonne ; the mountain roads over the
Simplon, Mont Cenis, Mont Genivre, the Comichc road
wliich opens up the Alps in four directions. These roads,
which alone have cost over 80 millions, excel in daring, in
extent, and as works of art, the combined constructions of
this kind built by the ancients ; the roads from the
Pyrenees to the Alps, from Parma to Spezia, the Pont
d'lena, the Pont d’Austcrlitz, the Pont des Arts, in Paris ;
the bridges of Sivres, Tours, Roanne, Lyons, Turin, over
the Iserc, over the Durance, that of Bordeaux, of Rouen,
etc ; the canal winch joins the Rhine with the Rhone
through the Doubs, and connects the North Sea tvith the
Mediterranean ; the canal between the Scheldt and the
Somme, that means between Amsterdam and Paris ; the
canal that joins the Ranee with the Vilaine, that of Arles,
of Pavia, and of Reno ; the draining of the swamps of
Bourgoin, Cotentin, and Rochefort ; the restoration of
the churches which were destroyed during the Revolution,
the building of a large number of new churches, the
erection of a_ large number of houses, in order to put a
stop to begging ; the building of the Louvre, of store-
houses for com, of the Exchange, the Ourcq Canal, the
Paris waterworks, the weirs, the quays, all kinds of adorn-
ment of this capital ; the works of 'nt

272 MEMOIRS OF NAPOLEON I

Rome the restoration of the manufactures of Lyons ;
the erection of several hundred cotton factories, both for
spinning and for weaving, in which several million pairs
of hands arc busy, the means of building over 400 factories
for the production of beet sugar, which supplied a part of
France, and which, if they had been supported for four
years longer, 'ivould have sufficed to supply the needs of
all Europe, and that at the same price as the sugar from
the West Indies; the support of the trades wliich produce
indigo as good and as cheap as that from the Colonies ;
a great number of factories for works of arts, etc., 50
millions for repairing the Crown palaces, and adorning
them ; 60 millions for furniture witli which these Crown
palaces were fitted whether in France, or Holland, in
Turin or Rome ; 16 millions for Crown diamonds which
were all bought with my savings. The “ Regent ”
(a diamond) was the only one left of the old French
Crown, and even that ^vas redeemed from Berlin Jews, to
whom it had been pawned for three millions ; the
Napoleon Museum, valued at 400 millions, which contains
only objects acquired legally by purchase, or by peace
negotiations ; several millions for the improvement of
agriculture, etc. All this constitutes a treasure which
will last for centuries and is sufficient to repel all
calumniations.

MY LAST PROTEST AGAINST ENGLAND’S UNWORTHY TREAT-
MENT, 19TH APRIL, 1821

I surrendered to the British nation in order to settle
down and make my home among them. I asked for
honest hospitality, but, contrary to all the rights of nations,

I was put in chains ! I would have met with a different
reception from the Emperor Francis. He would have
received me with respect. Even the King of Prussia
would have acted more magnanimously. But the lot fell
to England to persuade the princes and to show the
world the hitherto unheard-of spectacle of four gre^
Powers falling upon a single man. It was the British
Ministry that chose as the place of my captivity tms
abominable rock where a European can usually live only
three years. And how have I been treated since I have
been staying on this wretched rock? There is nothing

YEARS OF SUFFERING : ST. HELENA 273

unworthy, nothing detestable, which they have not taken
a pleasure in doing tvith tlic object of irritating me. The
most harmless communication with my family, which is
never refused to anybody, has been denied me. Not a
single scrap of news, not even a newspaper, which has not
first been through English hands, has been allowed to
reach me from Europe. My wife, and even my son were
no longer alive for me. For six years I have been tortured
by having everything kept secret from me. On this
inhospitable island they have chosen for my habitation
the part that is most unsuitable, namely, that where the
murderous tropical climate is most severely felt. I, svho
used to ride my horse all over Europe, have had to shut
myself up svithin four walls in unhealthy air. I have been
slowly murdered svith cold deliberation, and tire worth-
less Hudson Lowe has been the policeman svho has
carried out the machinations of the English Ministers.

England will end like the proud Republic of Venice.
As for me, who am ending my days on this frightful rock,
deprived of my family and stripped of everything, I
bequeath the shame and atrocity of my death to the
reigning Royal Family of England !

EDITOR’S POSTSCRIPT

O N the 20th of April, 1814, Napoleon, while
taking a moving farewell of his Guards in the
courtyard of Fontainebleau, told them, by way
of consolation to them and to himself, that, in his exile, he
would make a record of the great deeds ^yhich he had
accomplished in common with his incomparable army.

In Elba, however, he could not find time to fulfil his
promise, for, from the very first day of his stay in his little
kingdom he had been calculating how to leave the island
again, in order to gain possession of the Grown of France
once more.

It was only on the wearisome voyage to St. Helena that
the Emperor made up his mind to describe, in his new
place of exile, his eventful life. In all probability, it is to
Count Las Gases, who •willingly accompanied the Emperor
in his exile, to whom we owe the great service of having
influenced him to begin his memoirs wdthout delay.
Certain it is that Las Cases, for whom the Emperor soon
conceived a warm affection, was the one man among his
companions in St. Helena, who proceeded constantly, and
with a definite aim in view, to urge Napoleon to_ his task,
and, with his son, took down the most of the dictations.
On board the Northumberland the work was already
begun. On the gth of September the Emperor dictated
his first reminiscences which had for subject his earliest
successful feat of arms, namely, at Toulon.

The description of the siege of Toulon (1793)
intended as the starting-point of Napoleon’s memoirs ;
the second abdication of the Emperor (1815) was to form
the conclusion. It was an immense undertaking which
the Emperor had proposed to himself, and of which ^let
it be said at once — he was only able to complete a very
small part. The reasons for this are of a threefold nature :
the want of the appropriate original documents, the lack

274

EDITOR’S POSTSCRIPT 275

of skilled collaborators, and finally the illness and death of
the Emperor,

Napoleon’s first dictations took place tvithout any kind
of preparation, and were given completely from memory.
The Emperor had, it is true, brought with him from Ram-
bouillet, a library of 400 volumes, but they were mostly
of a literary nature, and contained no historical works
which could be used as a scientific basis. While the
Korthumhirland was lying in harbour at Madeira, tlie
Emperor asked the British Government to procure for
him, in return for payment, a number of learned works,
which reached Longwood, his last dwelling-place, in
June 1816. It was a whole year before a new supply
reached St. Helena. In the meantime. Sir Hudson
Lowe, in spite of the strained relations c.\isting between
the pair, had placed a few books at the disposal of “ General
Bonaparte.” It was not till the year 1818 that there was
an abundant supply of all kinds of books, and it gave
Napoleon the greatest pleasure to be able to unpack the
books liimself, to look through them, to read them, and
sometimes to tvritc notes on them. In the years 1820 and
1821 he was even more abundantly provided with books,
but at that time he could no longer do any work, as he
was almost always ill.

On the whole it may be said that, until June 1816,
Napoleon lacked almost completely the historical ground-
work necessary for the composition of his memoirs ;
from June 1816 till the spring of 1818 he had at his disposal
a quantity of material which, though modest in amount,
was nevertheless passable in value, and from the spring of
i8t8 to the year i8ai, Napoleon had access to almost all
the valuable books dealing with his reign and his cam-
paigns to the extent that they had already appeared in print.

Although he was not a soldier. Count Las Cases was the
most suitable and most skilful of Napoleon’s collaborators.

liiiuiueu 101 uieiii, was nut at au in a nt state
for their occupation. Napoleon therefore spent the first
few weeks in the idyllic country house, “ The Briars,”
Owing to lack of room, only Las Cases lived rvith him,
and he began, soon after their arrival there, to take down

276 MEMOIRS OF NAPOLEONl' ,*

Napoleon’s dictations. From October
compa.nions of the Emperor also began to ti
work, especially Goiirgaud, formerly one of ^
ordciiv officers, who had taken part in
campaigns in close proximit\^ to Iiis ma^
possessed good technical militar}^ knowledg
Oases iiad lefr St. Helena about the end
General Gourgaud in the beginning of i
soon began to lose interest in the record^
e\*ents of his time ^vliich he had planneo
already a rather 'wom-out n an and no lot?
his former iron energy*. General Bertrand]
keen on acting as secretary, as. having
Grand ^Marshal, he consid'ered the office

ih

_ tiie
)ikc rart in ^
itheEmpcrdi^t;

many of •
ani sybb
WhenXai
of 1816 , and
18 , Napoleoii
of Ac great
for he was
jiger pQSKsnd
was not ¥Ciy

beneath hif

dignirv*. ]MonthoIon also ^\'as not the ricrhi

T i man to gwe

fs. From the

cftectuai support to Napoleon in his labomj
year 1S20 Napoleon ceased ^*rork altogether.-lh^^

a few
^bshion of Inis
that he had

'vcee.ks before his dcadi he began the comh
extensive and in mis work he proved
prt^erv-ed to the last the immense keens^ hwalk np' aiid ■

and hands

peror nsea tolj
v.im bent

Duriiisr the dictation me hmuero
aown in the room all the time
clasped behind his back, in s
forehead \vonId stand o*at in
more he became interested in Hs racject
■went both the 'vvalking and the dictation
lisrht matter to ^'.-rite dc'-m -imat the F

re.^arxa oi&

iigat matter to ^'.Ttte Ge*-m ’^mat me ^

He seemed to be cnite ^mapped in tl:cngnt-|^.
Hmself alone in the room. He paid no ptrenty ^

'ausdes of his
The

— r!,!;.=C ' • t'

die qoicfcer
It was no
Jr was saying-

andfeuKiod

:o ■sviiat 'was oemt: ■^vn

only step
hem fid
Ihc wider

EDITOR’S POSTSCRIPT 377

Though Napoleon was no longer the man he formerly
was, and sometimes, after a rather lengthy statement,
would drop exhausted into a chair, there were yet again
days in which he showed a capacity for work which
scarcely anybody could have equalled. Count Montholon
remembers how, on the 8th of June, 1817, the Emperor
kept him writing to his dictation for fourteen consecutive
hours in answer to Lord Bathurst’s speech of the 18th of
March, 1817. Montholon said that he had been com-
pletely exhausted after it, while Napoleon, apparently in
the best condition, sat down and dined.

Before the Emperor began any portion of the work he
used to indicate to each of his fellow-workers the subject
on which they were to inform themselves and collect
records. When he had made himself sufficiently acquain-
ted with the subject which he wished to deal with, he
began to dictate. His collaborator wrote down the
statements made on the same day, or had the work carried
out by an assistant. Then he would bring it the next
morning to the Emperor, who took up a new dictation on
the basts of the flnt copy. It was only this second dicta-
tion— of which, of course, a fair copy had been made —
that the Emperor used as the real concept, which he now
corrected and provided with marginal notes. Then
followed the third dictation ; but sometimes the Emperor
was not satisfied even with that, and gave a fourth, or
fifth dictation.

When new books arrived from Europe which contained
details which had previously escaped Napoleon’s notice,
or had been unknown to him, he would again take up
and revise a work which had already been put aside as
final. Hence it comes that there arc sometimes two more
or less different versions of the individual campaigns.
The account of the siege of Toulon, that of the 13th
Vend^maire, and that of the Italian campaigns of 1796
and 1797 had been dictated by the Emperor to Count
Las Cases, who had these portions printed in his
Mimorial. When Napoleon received new material, he
dictated the same campaigns to Montholon in the years
i8t8 and 1819, which he published in their new form in
1833 to 1835 the Mlmoires pour servir d Vhistoire de France
sous dfapoKon. The same thing happened in the case of

278 MEMOIRS OF NAPOLEON I

the Egyptian Campaign. Napoleon had dictated it to
Gourgaud in the year i8i6, and he (Gourgaud) also had
it printed in the above-mentioned memoirs. In the year
1819 the Emporer again went into this work with Mon-
tholon, but it was not until the year 1847 that Bertrand,
or, strictly speaking, his heirs, published the final work
in two volumes.

The description of the campaign of Waterloo met with
a similar fate. Gourgaud published the first copy of the
Life and Times of Napoleon in the year 1818, although the
name of the author is omitted. The Emperor dealt with
the subject a second time, and O’Meara edited the work
again in its final form in 1820. Sometimes no alterations,
or only a few, were made in the individual chapters ;
here and there, however, Napoleon completely trans-
formed and enlarged the chapters, so that, for instance,
the fourteen pages on Toulon became twenty-three, and
the twenty-seven pages on the description of Egypt became
ninety- two.

The Emperor had dictated to Las Cases, on the 28th of
September, 1816, a provisional plan of the work, of
which only a very small portion was completed. Napoleon
only dealt with the history from 1793 (Toulon), up
to the year 1800 (the Consulate), then, after a consider-
able interval of time, his stay in Elba, and the Waterloo
campaign. During his reign Napoleon had the Austerhtz
campaign worked up, and took a great interest in its
composition. This work appeared in the year 1843.

Notwithstanding, in the works dictated in St. Helena
the history of the most important time of his life is lacking.
Even if circumstances had permitted the filling up of the
above-mentioned big gap from 1801 to 1814, we should
indeed have possessed a series of about twenty volumes,
but not a biography in compressed form, such as we
should Hke to have.

The present publication is intended to fill this gap as it
gives Napoleon’s life in his own words. During his
eventful life — ^from Corsica to St. Helena — ^Napoleon
talked with numerous people over all the phases of ms
activity. In letters, memoirs, ambassadorial reports,
descriptions of campaigns by men who took part in them,
the works of missionaries in St. Helena, as well as in the

EDITOR’S POSTSCRIPT 279

writings and dictations of the Emperor himself, immense
treasures lie hidden, whieh, when set out in a skilful
matmer, give an almost complete picture of Napoleon’s
life as presented by himself. As the text was mostly
rvritten or dictated when tiie impression of the events was
still fresh in Napoleon’s mind, the memoirs in this form
represent, rvitliout doubt, the most authentic, absorbing,
and direct work in the Napoleonic literature.

An immense optimism worthy of imitation pervades
the whole of Napoleon’s life, and is most strikingly reflected
in this work. Extraordinary, almost touching the mira-
culous, was the unbroken, conquering svill of this super-
man, even after the dap of Waterloo, when he returned,
dead tired, from the battlefield to the capital, which was
excited by the most varied passions, still making plan
after plan to face the enemy once more.

FRIEDRICH M. KIRCHEISEN.

Bekuk-Heiuisdokp,

Siptmber, 1927.

INDEX

Abb6Chardon, 12
Abb6 Rattel. 107
Abd-Allab (Bjetrar’s General), 86
Abdication, my, 213, 3i6
Aberdeen, Lord. 204
Aboular, 79. French fleet defeated at,
St , enemy land at, 91 , defeated
with heavy losses, 93
Acre, we fall to capture. 87
Adoption, 139
Adultery, 156
Alessandria. j6

Alexander, war of Russia. 123. 133,
182, 193

Alexandria, Freoch army at. 73 ;

bombarded by Dntlsh, 87
AUernand. Captain. 61. tet, 121
Allies ultimatum of ChdUUoo. 205
Alvinciy, Field^Marsbal. 69
Ambition. 242

Americans avengers of the sea, 239
Amiens, treaty of. 1O5
Ancona 173
Angel El Mabdl. 88. 9®

Anstett, Baron, 20a
Arabs, alliance «ttli 7‘4
Areola, flght for bridge of 69 . battle
Of, 71

Argentau, General, 49 . defeated at
Montenotte 50
Army of the Interior, 43
Attempts on my life, 102-117
Aubry, F , 40, 41

Augerau, General, 49, Jt, 53, 39, fjo# 0*,
63, 65, 68, 69, 7X, 182
Austertitz, battle of. 124, X23
Autnn High School, X2

Bagration, Pnnee, i#4, *97
B^lreh Province, nsuig in, 88
Balcombe, hlr (of SC. Helena), 239
Bidmain. Count, 193
Barclay do Tolly, General, 197
Barras, Paul, Count, 43, 47. *83
Bassano, Duke of (hfarct), 2x5, 238
Bathurst, Lord. 264
Bavana, King of, 124, 126, 203
Bavaria, Queen of, 126
Bayonne, Spanish Iloyaltios at, I3<^
140, 141

Bcauhamais, Engtne, 47 ; marries
Bavanan Princess, 126 ; 270
Beanbarnals, Hortense, 47, 270
Bcauhamais, Josephine, 46
Beaulieu. General, 49 . at Acqui, S^.
59

Beauvean, hfadame, 149
BMoybre. Colonel de, 220
Belbes, 78

Dellefophon (Bntish ship), 2J9, *58.
257

Benexeoto, Pnnee of (Talleyrand),

*90

Bennigsen, Baron (RuMian Coro*
tnander) X3t

Bemadottc. Marshal, 128, X29. <30.

13*, *47
Berlin, 201
Bernier. Father, 169
Bemijer, General. 45
Berthier, Field-Marshal. 54, 39 , nt
Marengo, 98 at I^sUngeQ. 142 ,
character of 183

Bertrand, Lieut -General, 143 *44,204,
2x5 224, 239 260. 2&2, 267
Bcssitrcs, Drlgadier-Gencral, lO®, *84
Bcyrand, General, 60
Blcstro, 50. 5* *

Bingham, Sir George. Admiral, 262
Birth of King 0! Rome, 130
BlOcher. General von, 128. x29. *84,
205, 223
Bocagnaso, ix
Botlcau. Nicolas (poet). 231
Bon, General, 69 , at Alexandna, 74 .
on the Kile, 76 , at Cairo. 82 ,
at JaSa, 85

Bonimarte, Caroline (my sister), 103 ,
Queen of Naples, 163
Bonaparte, Charles (my father), 9,
inheritance of. xo , in Pans, 14 ,
death of. 16

Bonaparte, Jerome, a ** waster,” 162
Bonaparte. Joseph, xo , at school, 12 ,
at father's deathbed, xG , bis wife,
x6i , at Concordat, , flight
of, 2x4 , 270

Bonaparte, Letizia (my mother), 9, 11,
4®. 4*. 270

Bonap^e. Lucien, 15, 134

281

(282

INDEX

Bonaparte, Napoleon I, birth, 9 ;
parents, 10 ; sister Pauline, 10 ;
brother Joseph, 10 ; at High
School, Autun, 12 ; Military
School, Brienne, 13 ; interest in
science, 13 ; visit from mother,
x.t : father’s illness, 14 ; entered
Paris Military School, iG ; death
of father, 16 ; gazetted Second
I.icutcnant la F5rc Regiment
Valence, 17 ; thoughts of suicide,
J7; disciple of Rousseau, 19;
novel rending, 20 ; first flirtation,

21 ; trip to Dauphiny, 21 ;
regiment moved to Lyons, 21 ;
home on leave, 21 ; visit Ponten-
uovo, 21 ; Joseph’s account of,

22 ; return to Paris, 22 ; mono-
logue on patriotism, 24 ; my first
challenge, 24 ; in favour with
General Du Ticl, 25 ; in Auxonne,
26 ; discussion witli Dcs Mazis,
27-29 ; Republic or Monarchy,
31 ; rumours of war, 32 ; excite-
ment in Paris, 32 ; revolution
apparent, 33 ; studying astrono-

33 ; storming of Tuilcries, 34;
beginning of Revolution, 34 ;
King’s flight, 35 ; my career began
at Siege of Toulon, 37 ; I take
General O’Hara prisoner, 38 ; am
promoted to Colonel, 38 ; and
raised to Brigadier-General, 38 ;
expedition to Corsica, 39 ; I
refuse to serve at Vendee, 39 ;
appointed General in army of
interior, Paris, 39 ; my attempt at
suicide, 41 ; meeting wth des
Mazis, 41 ; in the *' Council of
Forty,” 43 ; the 13th Vendemaire,

43 ; Murat’s success at Sablons,

44 ; first meeting with Lemarois,
44 ; General Verdier defends Palais
National, 44 ; rebels attack beaten
44 ; finally disarmed, 46 ; I
propose to Josephine Beauhamais,
47 ; Campaign in Italy, 48 ;
battle of Montenotte, 50 ; battle
of Millesirao, 51 ; battle of
Cossiera, 51 ; fightatMassena, 51 ;
Dego taken, 51 ; on the Heights of
Montezemlo, 52 ; battle of Mon-
dovi, 53 ; battle of Cherasco, 54 ;
discipline restored, 54 ; Pied-
montese ask for truce, 55 ; terms
of peace, 56 ; thoughts of Jose-
phine, 57 ; bridge of Lodi taken,
59 ; siege of Mantua, 60 ; Wurm-
ser opposes me, 60 ; enemy ad-
vance on Brescia, 63 ; French
withdraw to Desenzano, 63 ;
raised siege of Mantua, 63 ; enemy

take Castiglione, 65 ; battle of
Lonato, 66 ; enemy retreat, 66 ;
we capture Salo and Gavardo, 67 ;
we take Verona, 68 ; battle of
Areola, 69 ; Colonel Muiron saves
my life, 71 ; Egyptian campaign
starts, 73 ; Alexandria taken, 73 ;
agreement -with Arabs, 74 ; march
through the desert, 74 ; battle of
Kobrakit, 76 ; we entered Cairo,
77 ; advance into Syria, 78 ;
occupation of Salihijeh, 79 ; loss of
our fleet at Aboukir, 79 ; rising in
Cairo, 82 ; march into Syria, 82 ;
El-Arish taken, 83 ; Gaza taken,
84 ; Jaffa occupied and plundered,
86 ; we fail to take Acre, 87 ;
retreat to Egypt, 87 ; rising of the
Angel El-Mahdi, 88-go ; entry
into Cairo, 91 ; land battle at
Abouldr, 91-93 ; approach of
Continental war, 92 ; I leave
Egj'pt and land at Frijus, 94 ; I
make enemy of Madame de Stael,
95; I seize Dictatorship, 96 : battle
of Marengo, 97-100 ; Massena and
Genoa, loi ; attempts on my life,
102 ; infernal machine explodes,
103 ; trial of criminals, 103 ;
expedition to San Domingo, 104 ;
war with England, 104 ; Treaty of
Amiens, 105 ; English create a
diversion. 106 ; plots to kill me,
107-117; Moreau's guilt, 112;
Pichegru's suicide, 114; Duke
d’Enghien executed, 116 ; landing
in England possible, 117:
maritime plan, 119 : union with
Dutch fleet, 119; passage of
troops to England, ii9»‘
spoilt by Austrians, 119 I Spamsh
fleet joins at Cadiz, 119; French
and Spanish attack West Indies,
120 ; Villeneuve at Cadiz, I23 •
spoilt my plan, 123 ; Mack s
retreat to Ulm, 123 ; fighting at
Elchingen, 123 ; Austrian stores
taken. 123 ; Mack’s troops taken
prisoners, 123 ; I march on Vmnna,
123 ; Archduke Charles retteats
from Italy, 123 1 at Austerhtz 1
defeat Russo-Austrian army, 124 .
Archduke Charles takes refuge m
Hungary, 125 ; negotiations witt
Prussia, 125 : I marry
Austrian Princess, 126 ; P-rassia
declared war, 1806, 127 :

Tena, 129 ; victory of French, 13
sanguinary battle of Eyiau, 132.
Queen Louisa and M^g^bu^,

132; treaty with Russia at Erfurt,

135,’ FouchG and Josephines

aegotutions witlj Mctterolch,
sio; mr narrow escape at Dricnne
an ; Dfacher and Schwarreoberp
JnarchedonParis.sta; myforced
ctarch to Pans, ata : ilarmont'a
betrayaJ, 213; I an dnvea to
abdicaUos, 2l4->atG; 1 take

poison Ineffectoally, 217; ay
return from Ella, 217; at
Grenoble, 220 ; from Lyons to
Paris, *21 ; flight of Louis XVIII,
*335 tricolour over LUJ**, 223,
Marseille snrrend'Tcd, 223 , I

283

226; I abandon claims as ruler,
229; surrender to Captain Mait-
land os private citlrcn, 229;

236, Poland treated wrongly, 237,
the English Government. 2311,
Americans avengers of tlie sea,
239 . my code of I-aws, 239-241 ;
against State Ix)ans. 2 ( I , wealth
not merit, 242. nmi>ition and
genius, 242. the nobility, 242;
Industry and Commerce, 243 ,
ttorkioc on Sunday. 244 , press
censorship. 244 . education, 240-
230, hutor>, 25 j , my habits,
254. my Hork, 25&, at St.
Ifeleoa. 25O. at ’‘The nriars,"
258 at Longwood, 2C0 , the
climate, 26t, the inhabitants 2C1;
the*' Valley of Silence," aCi , Mr
Warden and Miss Ilobinson, 2O2,
my protat against imprisonment,
2<>3 , demand for my expenses,
264 . plate broken up, 2O4 ,
Count Las Cases returned to
Europe, 265 , our boundaries
mlooed. 263 , I refuse to sec the
Covemor, 2C6 , cost of my
captivity, 2^7 , my health gets
worse, 268 , depnved of my
physicians, 268, otFenrive div
patches burned, 268 . the right to
suicide, 2&8 , advice to my son,
7C0 . ay real treasures, 271 , my
last protest, 273 , England will
end like the Ri^mbUc of Venice,
*73

Bonaparte, Pauline (my sister), 10,

t6i. ibj

Bord'aoi, Loghsh cruis'rs at, 227
Porniida, 39

Borodino, battle of, 19^, *97
Boo, Jlademouelle (of Val>xce}, *7
Boodet, General, 97
BotuTteone, Louis Antoine cc, 24
Bra, town of, 54
IJraycr, General, 221
Breslau, 201

Bnssne, military school of, 13
Brjean**, battle at. an
Brumaire, the i8lh.

INDEX

284

Brune, General, 45
BrunsNvick, Duke of, 129
Bubna, General, 143
Bucenlatirc, battlesliip, 119

Cadoudal, Georges, 103, 107, no, 114,

Cairo, French army occupy, 77 ;
rising in, 82 ; celebration of my
return, 91

Calder, Sir Robert, Admiral, 122
Cambaedrfes, President of " Council of
Forty," 43, 184

Cambronne, General, 217, 218, 219

Campaign in Italy, 48-56

Carcare, 50

Carnot, General, 184

Cartaux, General, 45

Casale, 59

Castiglione, 65, 66, 68
Castiglione, Duke of (Augereau), 124,
128 ^

Catholicism or Protestantism, 165, 177
Ceriolo Castle, 99
Cervona, General, 59
Ceva, 49, 52 ; French Headquarters at,

52

Chabran, General, 97, 99
Chambon (People's representative), 39
Chardon, Abbd, 12
Charette, 45

Charles, Archduke (of Austria), 123,
124

Charles IV, King of Spain, 140, 141,
186

Chatillon, treaty of, 205
Cherasco, 53 ; French army in, 54
Children, 154

Church and State, 168-181
Clarke, General (Duke of Feltre), 185
Clauzel, General, 228
Cockbum, Sir George, Admiral, 258,
260

Code of Laws, my, 239-241
Colli. General, 49, 50, 51, 52, 54
Collingwood, Lord, 122
Colombier, Mademoiselle Caroline du,
21

" Committee of Safety,” the, 40
Concordat, of 1801, 170 ; of 1813, 176,
179

Constant, Benjamin, 95
Constitution, an ideal, 232
Copenhagen, English Isombardment of,

139

Corneille, Pierre, 251
Comiche, 49
Cornwallis, Admiral, 122
Corona, 62

Coronation as King of Italy, 120
Corsica, 39

Corsican Civil War, 41

Corvisart, Dr., 38, 148, 150
Cosseria, Castle of,

Coster, 102, 114
" Council of Forty,” 43
Crdtet, State Councillor, 169

Dallemagne, General, 59, 61, 63, 67
Dalmatia, Duke of (Soult), 128 ; at
Eylau, 13 1 ; at Paris, 220
Damanhur, 74, 81 ; destroyed, 89
d’Angouleme, Due, 223
Danican (Royalist Leader), 43
d’Artois, Conte, 103, 116, 222
David, Jacques (Painter), 255
Davout, General, at Sharkieh, go ; at
Jena, 130 ; at Esslingen, 142 ;
at Wagram, 147, 193
de Beauregard, Colonel Costa, 55, 56
Dego, 39. 51 : capture of, 52
d’Enghien, Duke, 109, 116
de Lozier, Bouvet, no, 114
Denmark, treaty with, 202
Denon, Baron, 255
de Polignac, Armand, 108, 114
de Revel, Count Raon, 56
de Rivifere, 108, 114
Desaix, Generd, 74 ; in Egypt, 82 ;
at San Giuliano, 99 ; killed, 100 ;
character of, 185
Desgenettes, Doctor, 91
Des Mazis, 17, 21, 27, 41, 43
Despotism, 232

de Stael, Madame, 95, 176, 189, 254

Ddtrfes, Brigadier-General, in Egypt, 90

Divorce, 155, 170

Djezzar, Pasha, 83

Dombrowski, GenerM, 237

Dommartin, General, at Cairo, 82

Dorsenne, General, 146

D'Orthes, Viscount, 20

Doumerc, General, 201

Dresden, zoi, 202

Dubois, Dr., 150, 151

Duchktel, Madame, 160

du Colombier, Mademoiselle, 21

Dugommier, General, 37

Dugua, General, 74, 7 ^>

Dupas, Battalion Commander, 60

Duphot, General, 174

Dupuis, Charles F., Professor, 245

Dupuy, General, killed at Cairo, 82

Duranteau, Citizen, 88

Duroc, Marshal, 134. 160, 185, 254

Duvigier, General, 45, 4 ^

Duvoisin, Bishop of Nantes, ^75

Ebrington, Viscount (at Elba), 86
Educational systems, 246-252
Eggmuhl, Prince of (Davout), 134 / “ 5 '
128. 129, 145

El-Arish, captured, 84, 90

INDEX

Elba, my arris’s! from. 217; I left
Elba too soon, 527
ElcblDgen. DuVe of (Key), 124
^ght of, 90
EllvJou. 46

Emir Iladshi ptinlshed, 86
" Emperor of the French,*' my title,

English Government, 238
English troops* bravery, 224
Enjoyment of U/e, 30
Erfort, Treaty of, 135, *36. 194
Esdod (Arotus), 85

EssUng, Prince of (General Bfaasena).
t23.*23, T45

Esslingen, battle of, 142-147
Eylan, battle of, 131, 132

Eathers and children, 137
Eav'velct (brother of Bourrienne), 34
Federation of l^atioas pUn, 230
Ecrdinand, Archduke, 123
rerdinand, Pnnee of /Gitnrlaa, 140.
166

Eocch. Jweph, 19^^

Eossaso, 33

Foachi. Joseph, 136, 183, 226, 228
Eox, Charles James 172
Francis 11, Emperor of Austria, 1 86
Franck, Dr. 148
Eranco-SpanUh naval forces. I2X
Frankfurt Congress at, 204
Frederick William HI, of lYussia, 125.
128, 129 132, 237

Gantanme, Fear*Adm!ral. 94, 118.
122

Garda, loke of, 61, 63
Gardanne, General, 71, 98
Garesslo, 49
Gavardo, 67
Gavi, 49

Gaza, capture of, 85
Genoa, 49, zoi
Genius, 242
Gerard, General, 212
Germans, my respect for, 236
Godoy, Spanish " Prince of Peace,”
140, 186

Gonrdon, Rear-Admiral, 121, 122
Gourgaud, General, 15. ax6, 224, 259,
262

Grandellana, Admiral, 221, 122

285

Grant, Madame (wife of TalJyraad),
170, 191

Grassini, Sicmora (Singer), 235
Gravina, Admiral, J19, 122
Grenoble, 220
Grouchy, Marshal, 224
Galeu, General, 63, 70
GuUlanme, General, 61
Coyot. General, 224

Hadshf, Emir, 88
Hanan, battle of, 204
Hanover annexed to Prussia, 126
Halzfeld, Frau von, 130
Happiness, tehat It, 3t
Ilaugssitz, Count, 124, 227
lletbm. General, Cy
Hetcnle, Dtizen, 71
Historians. 2ji
Hohenlohe, ^nce of, 129
• - • « /.rc*

Ibrahim Bey, 78. 79
India and the English, 239
lovnsioD of England plan, loj, to6,
X17. nS

leabey (drawing master), 150. tgt
Italy, my plan for, 236

I a0a. capture of. 85
ttraestown. St Helena. 258, 259. 262
ena battle of rag 237
esuits the, 180
cws in France, l63, 181
osephine, 46. 37-59. 204, Z37 , duorce
of. 148 139
Joubert General 51
Jouberthoa, Madame. 135
Joyant (conspirator), 102
Judith ” x6i
JuticQ, Citizen, 80
Justice, the sailing ship, 81

Kalisch, Treaty of, 205
Katich (Syria), 83

Keith, Lord, my portest to, 256. 238
Kellennan, Gcnem.400, 100

Konum, 78
Koran, the. 168
Koser (Egypt), 88
Kurakin. Ihince, 133
Kutnsow, Russian General, 123, 124.
196

286

INDEX

La B^doyere, Colonel, 220
La Bontc, 107
Lagrange, General, 83
Laharpe, General, 49, 50, 51, 52
Lahaye, 107

Lajolais, General, 108, 114
Lamarque, General, 228
Lamoelan, 102, 103
Lannes, Brigadier-General, 59, 69, 70,
78, 84 ; at Jaffa, 85 ; at Aboukir,
, 92 ; character of, 186

' Lanusse, General, at Gizeh, 88 ;
destroyed Bamarhur, 89, 90 ; at
Aboukir, 92
Laona, 49

Lapo3^e, General, 97

La Eiboisifere, General, 142

Larrey, Baron (Surgeon), 187

Lasalles, General, 144

Las Cases, Count, 259, 265

La Tour, Count (Sardinia), 55

Latour, General (Piedmontese), 55

La Vendde, people of, 106

Laws, civil, 240

Laws, criminal, 240

Leclerc, General, 78, 79

Le Contrat Sociale, 19

Leffebre, Brigadier-General, 89

Leipsic, battle of, 203

Lemarois, 44, 46

Lesueur (actor), 255

Le Tourneur (Committee of Safety), 40

Liberty of the Press, 239

Liverpool, Lord, 268

Livorno engagement, 39

Loans, State, 241

Lobau, Count (Mouton), 146

Lobau, Island of, 143

Lodi taken, 59

Loison, General, 97

Lonato, battle of, 65, 66

Lorge, General, 97

Louis XIV, 178

Louis XVI, 34, 187, 222, 233

Louis XVIII, 222, 255

Louisa, Queen, of Prussia, 1 32-1 34

Love, what is, 152

Lowe, Sir Hudson, 263, 265

Lozier, Bouvet de, no, 114

Lucchesini, Marquis, 127, 237

Macdonald, General (Duke of Taren-
tum), 188, 202

Mack, Baron von, defeated at Ulm, 123
Magon, Admiral, 121
Maitland, Captain (of the Bellerophon),
229, 257

Majestueux, flagship, 119
Malbousquet, Fort, 37
Malmaison, 226
Mantua, 60

Marengo, battle of, 97-100

Maria Louisa (of Austria), my second
wife, 149, 196, 255
Maria, Queen of Spain, 186
Marie, Jean, 107

Mariette (People’s Representative), 39
Marly, camp at, 43
Marmont, General, 73, 213, 214, 216
Marriage, 154
Mars, Mademoiselle, 255
Massena, General, at Laona, 49 ; at
I^ego, 51, 59, 61, 63, 65, 68, 70,
loi, 147, 188
Mathis, Mademoiselle, 161
Matilda, Countess, 178
Maximilian, Archduke, 142
Melas, 96, 97
Menard, General, 51
Menou, General, at Alexandria, 73
Merfeldt, Count, taken prisoner, 203
Mettemich, Prince, 201 ; Congress in
Prague, 202 ; at Frankfurt, 204 ;
ultimatum of ChStillon, 205 ; at
Dresden, 210

Meudon powder magazine, 44
Me5mier (People’s Representative), 38
Millesimo, 50 ; battle of, 51
MioUis, General, 173, 174
Missiessy, Admiral, 119
Monaco, Prince of, 217
Monasteries, 167, 180
Moncey, General, 97
Mondovi, battle of, 53
Monnier, General, 97, 99
Montchoisy, General, 45
Montebello, Duchess of, 149
Montebello, Duke of (Lannes), 128,

143. 145

Monte Negino, 50
Montenotte, 49 ; battle of, 50
Montesquieu, Baron de, 251
Montezemlo, Heights of, 52
Miontholon, General, 262, 263, 267
Moreau, General, 107, 108, in, 113,
114, 188

Moscow, burning of, 197, 198 ; the
retreat from, 199
Moskwa, battle of the, 196, 197
Moskwa, Prince of (Ney), 128, 215
Muiron, Colonel, saves my life, 71
Murad-Bey, 75, 76, 82 .

Murat, Joachim (King of Naples), at
Sablons, 44 ! at Mondovi, 53. 56;
at Aboukir, 92 ; on the Danube,
124 ; character of, 188

Naples, King of (Murat), 201
Nelson, Lord, 120, 121
Nesselrode, Count von, 204
Netherwood, officer, at Jaffa, 85
Neubreisach oii Rhine, 116
vNeuch&tel, Prince of (Berthier), J44>
201, 214

INDEX 287

Newspapers, 252
Key, &laishal, 189
Nice. Headquarters at, 48
Nivemois. Duke of. 46
Noailles. Madame Juste de, 162
Nobility, appreciatioa of the, 242
i^orihumberland, Dnbsh ship, 258, 260
Novi, 49

O’Hara, General, taken prisoner. 37
OIdcnbur{*, occupation of. 193
Omat'Malnm (Shiek of Cairo), 86
Oneglia, 39

'' O^n Road to Talent,” 235

Orde, Sir John, 119

Orient, Key to, 42

OriftH of b>* Dupuis. 245

Orleans, Duke of, 271

Ormca, 39

Oubnl, Count. 127

PaEr, Terdinando (Composer). 235
Paoll, General Pascal. 12. 13. at
Ponlenuo^o, ai

Pans, military s^ool at. 15 . Rc%*olu*
Uon in. 34-46; my Dictatorship.
96. Hnetny occupy. 213. my
march on. 217, am>alatla <815.
222

Pass of Tends, 39
Pauline, to, 12
Perrte. Otuen. 75
Pcschiem Heights, 64, 63
Petrault, Father, 13
PhUdra. Opera In Pans, 42
Fhibppcaux (artillery officer) at Acre.
4^

Pichcgru, General. 107, ti2 . suicidcof,
114, character of, 189
Picot, 107, xio
Pietro. Carfinal, 175
Pitt, William, X06

Pius vn, 170 , and Fontainebleau
Concordat, 178 , his Court. 178
Poison, my attempt at, 2x7
Poland. Kingdom of. 236-238
Policy, my, 234
Pompey's Pillar. 73
Font^coulant (Committee of Safety).
4°

Pope, the, and the Church, x08
Populanty, *33
Prague, Congress of. 202
Press cezxsorship, 244, 243, 233
Press, liberty of the. 239. 344. *53
Prince Regent of England. 229. 268
Protest against my captivity. 237
Provera, General, surrendered, 3X
Prussia declared war 1806, 127

Querelle (Surgeon), 107, 110

Racine. 251

Ragusa, Duke of (Marmont), X24. X25.
203, 2x5

Raxnbeau. Adjutant General, 83
Ramfeh, 85

Rainpon, General, at Monte Negmo,

30.77

Rapp. General, 103, 146

Reggio. Duke of (Oudinot), 145. 200

R4gnaud, Monsieur, 16

Reich. Baroness, 209

Reille, General, 224

Religion. 164 , xavented by men, 267 ;

importance of, 177
Rimusat, Madame, 137
Republic or Monarchy, 31
Republican CoN'tmmcnt, 233
Revolution a misfortune, 234
Rej*. Major, 2x9

Rcynier, General, 76, 78, 79, 83, 200
Rlteisi^re, General 1 ^, 142
Robert, General. 70

Rosetta. 81

Rousseau, Jean Jacques, 19, 233
Roustan, Mons (Genoa Pastor), xq
ROchcl. General, 229
Rusca, General, 60
Russia, %var iMth, 1612, 193

Sablons camp. 43

Saint.C>T. hlarshal Gouvion, 124. 125
St Helena, arrival at, 238 , at ” Thu
Bnsrs,” 258 , atLonginood 260.

Qimateof, 261 , inhabitants of, 261.
** Volley of Silence," 26: , Miss
Robinson, 262 . I protest against
impnsonmeat. 263 . expenses at
Longwood fixed, 264 restriction
of bounds, 265 ; commumcations
forbidden, 2% . cost of my
captivity, 267 . my health gets
worse, 263 , offensive letters
burned, 268 , nght to suicide,
268 , advice for my son. 269 , my
real treasures, 271 . last protest
of treatment, 273
Saint Hilaire, General, 66. 67, 107
Saint Rdjant. loa , executed, 103
Salihijeb, 79

Salmatoris, Count. 55, 175
Solo, 67

San Domingo Expedition. X04
San GiuUano, 99
Saorgio, 39, 48
Sardinia, King of, 52, 55
Sardinian Court and Truce, 53
Sauret, General, 6r, 63, 65, 07
Savary, Genera'

INDEX

288

Savona, 39, /jS ; Pope brought to, 174,

175

Saxon army joins the enemy, 203
Saxony, King of, 201
Scherer, General, 48
Schwarzenberg, Prince, 147, 200 ;

march on Paris, 212
Schweidnitz, 201
S( 5 gur, Mons., 149

Sdruricr, General, at Garessio, 49 ; at
Ceva, 52 ; at San Michele, 53 ;
at Bicocca, 53, 6r, 63, 68
Sie3'6s (of Committee of Safety), 40
Skelton, Colonel, at St. Helena, 258,
262

Skelton, Mrs. 262

Smith, Sidney (English Commander)
at Acre, 87, 107
Society of Jesus, the, iSo
Sorbonne, the, 168
Soult, Marshal, 189
Spain, war in, my ruin, 137
Spanish intrigues, 138-142
Spira, Cardinal, 169
Stadion, Count, 207
Stael, Madame de, 95, 176, 189, 254
Stalckclberg, Count, taken prisoner,
206

State Loans, 241
Stengel, General, at Lesigno, 53
Suez, English warships at, 90
Sugny, officer at Marseilles, 39
Sunday, working on, 244
Syria, Expedition to, 82-93 J
return to France, 94

Tacitus, 251

" Talent, open road to,” 235
Talleyrand, Perigord, 133, 136, 170 ;
character of, 190-191 ; ideal
diplomat, 227 ; on Poland, 237
Tallien, Madame, 46, igi
Talma, Frangois, 46, 255
Temporal and Spiritual Powers, 176
Tilsit, treaty of, 193
Tolly, Barclay de. General, 197
Touche, M6hee de la, 109
Toulon, siege of, 37,' 48
Trappists, 180

Trevisco, Duke of (Mortier), 124, 125
Troche, 107

Tschitschagow, Admiral, 200, 201
Tureau, 96

Tuscany, Grand Duchess of, 174 '

Uhn, battle of, 123, 125
Upper Egypt, 82-87

Vachor, General, 45

Valence, 17

Valette, General, 65

“ Valley of Silence ” (St. Helena), 261

VaPdamme, loss of, 202

Vejiux, General, at Cairo, 82, 87

VePd< 5 e, army at, 40

VePddmaire, 13th, 40

Vei'dier, General, 44 ; wounded, 69

Vei’huell, Admiral, 228

VerTie, General, wounded, 69

Verona, 68

Vial, General, 70, 76, 77
Vicenza^ Duke of (Caulaincourt) at
Prague Congress, 202 ; before
Paris, 215
Victor, General, 97
Vignolles, General, 70
Villeneuve, Admiral, 118, 121, 122,

123

Vilna, 201

Vincent, Colonel, 104
Voltaire, Franfois, 251, 253
Voltri, 49, 50

Wagram, battle of, 147, 148
Warden, Mr. (of St, Helena), 262
Warsaw, 200

Waterloo, battle of, 223-225 ; after,
225

Watrin, General, 97
Wealth not merit, 242
Weimar, Duke of, 128, 129
Wellington, Duke of, 223
Whitworth, Lord, 105
Women, 153

Women, with the troops, 40 ,

Work my element, 254
Wrede, General, 203 ; wounded, 204
Wright, Captain, 107, 108, 112
Wurmser, Field-Marshal, 60, 63, 64,
65, 66

Wurtemberg, King of, 203

Yorck, Count (Prussian General), 131

Zach, General, taken prisoner, 100
Zaionczek, General, 237
Zastrow, General, 237
Zosciusko, General, 237