Bonaparte. The connexion of Bonaparte and the house of Austria was merely with the Emperor Francis. If any accident, whether of nature or fortune, happened to the Emperor Francis, the family alliance would certainly not have been held in much respect by the archdukes, who were all discontented with the insignificance to which their house was reduced. Such was the relative state of France and Austria; the alliance between them being rather between the Emperors Francis and Napoleon, than between the two families. The Emperor Francis, if the matter were considered in a mere selfish point of view, lost very little, and gained much; that is to say, he gained a splendid establishment for his daughter, and put himself into a state of security by winning over his enemy. On the other hand, the loss fell on the archdukes, who were supplanted by the family of Bonaparte. It was natural, therefore, that such of the states of Europe, as, from their natural interests, were the enemies of France, should, at this time, keep a steady eye upon this principle of weakness in the French and Austrian alliance. The court of Petersburgh could never forget that the alliance of France and Austria was necessarily an alliance against Russia, as the common object and purpose of Austria and Russia were necessarily to aggrandize themselves at the expence of Turkey. Turkey was the natural fund' from which both Austria and Russia always sought their accession of dominion, each power naturally looking towards the attainment of that district or province which immediately bordered on itself, and which was incapable of defence. Accordingly France, as the son and ally of Austria, was consequently bound to assist the Emperor Francis in these objects of his ambition, and thereby necessarily oppose the immediate views of Russia. There was no hope or possibility of any compromise, France having another motive to assist these designs of Austria, inasmuch as any accession of dominion, or strength to the Russian empire, would be so much added to the actual power of an enemy of France. The Archduke Francis was so disgusted at the slavery of his family, and ascendancy of the French in Vienna, as to be desirous of absenting himself from the scene of humiliation; and it was considered a singular coincidence, that the brother of Bonaparte, and the brother of the Emperor of Austria, equally ashamed of the Corsican's triumphs, should both, at the same time, seek an asylum beyond the reach of his power. The motives of the Archduke Francis were not well understood; but, whatever they were, he succeeded in his attempt to escape. His flight from the Austrian dominions had hitherto been kept a profound secret. He left Vienna early in 1811. the spring, privately, with a suite of about ten BOOK IX. persons, and travelled incog. under the title of a count, to Salonica, where he took shipping for CHAP. X. Smyrna. There, after remaining a short time, an order arrived from the British admiral to Captain Peyton, of the Weazle gun-brig, to convey his royal highness and suite to Sardinia, where the party arrived in May: it being given out that his highness came merely on a visit to the King and Queen of Sardinia, the latter of whom being nearly related to him. The Archduke was much pleased with his voyage from Smyrna, and particularly with the attentions of Captain Peyton, the grandson of Admiral Peyton, of Greenwich, and nephew to the two late Admirals Peyton. Captain Peyton was invited to dine with the King and Queen of Sardinia, the Archduke, &c.; and, in return, he gave a ball on the king's birth-day (4th of June) to their majesties and the Archduke, on board his ship. The singularity of the place and scene delighted the royal personages: it was the first English ship of war on-board of which the queen had ever been, and she was in high spirits on the occasion. Her majesty danced with Captain Peyton: to whom, and to his officers, in return for this unusual and unexpected entertainment, a fête-champetre was given, followed by a masked ball at the theatre; while the crew of the Weazle were regaled with the best productions of the island in abundance. The Archduke afterwards presented Captain Peyton with a gold snuff-box, having his initials on it, set with brilliants, as a token of his esteem of the captain, in consequence of his conduct. On the 20th of March, at nine in the evening, the King of Rome was christened in the Thuilleries chapel. His majesty, the emperor, accompanied by the princes, princesses, and great dignitaries, was followed by two witnesses of the ceremony, the great officers, ministers, the grand eagles of the legion of honor, military officers, pages bearing flambeaux, and the heralds of arms. The chapel had been prepared for his majesty the emperor with a fautucil, surmounted by a canopy, and provided with a praying-desk. The King of Rome, preceded by his officers, was carried by his governess; M. the Marshal Duke of Congliano carried the end of his mantle. The galleries of the chapel were filled by the persons belonging to the court. His majesty was received at the gate of the church by his eminence the cardinal grand almoner, who presented to him the blessed water. He was seated betwixt the altar and the balustrade, upon a tapestry of white velvet, a stand of granite, surmounted by a magnificent vermillion vase, forming the baptismal font. The two sponsors were, the Archduke Grand Duke of Wurtzburg, uncle of the empress, and Prince Eugene, the late empress's son. On 1811. BOOK IX. the right of the altar were the cardinals; on the left, the bishops, in their robes, &c. All having CHAP X taken their proper places, the cardinal grand almoner sang the Veni Creator, accompanied by the music of the chapel. After the hymn, his eminence approached the seat, towards which his majesty advanced with the child and the sponsors, and presented the infant to be baptised. This ceremony was followed by Te Deum, sung by all the music, of the chapel. During the Te Deum, the King of Rome, carried by his governess, and attended by his state officers, by an aidde-camp of the emperor, four chamberlains, two grooms, and a master of the ceremonies, preceded by four pages, was carried back to his apartment. MI. the Count of Lacepede, grand chancellor of the legion of honor, and M. the Count of Marescalchi, grand chancellor of the order of the iron crown, after having received the orders from the emperor, carried the grand cordon of these orders to the King of Rome. During the ceremony, a beautiful display of artificial fire-works, and the most brilliant illuminations throughout the whole city, amused the French people. On the 22d of March, the emperor being on his throne, surrounded by the princes of his family, and all the great officers of state, an address was presented to him by the senate, in which it was stated that the happiness of his people was his first object. The emperor replied thus: "The testimony of France goes directly to my heart. The great destiny of my son will be accomplished. With the love of the French every thing be easy for him. I am pleased with will the sentiments you express." The council of state was presented by the prince, arch-chancellor of the empire, and made a similar address.-His majesty replied: "I have eagerly desired what Providence has granted me. My sou will live for the happiness and glory of France. Our children will devote themselves for her happiness and glory. I thank you for the sentiments which you express." On the 16th of June the French emperor proceeded from the palace of the Thuilleries, in great state, to the palace of the legislative body. Discharges of artillery announced his departure from the Thuilleries, and his arrival at the palace of the legislative body. The empress, Queen Hortense, Princess Pauline, the Grand Duke of Wurtzburg, and the Grand Duke of Frankfort, were in one tribune; the corps diplomatique in another tribune; the bishops convoked for the council, and the mayors and deputies of the good cities, summoned to be present at the baptism of the King of Rome, were on benches. His majesty placed himself on his throne; the King of Westphalia, the princes, grand dignitaries, grand eagles of the legion of honor, occu pied their accustomed places about his majesty ; Prince Jerome Napoleon on his right. After the new members had been presented, and taken the oaths, the emperor made the following speech:— "Gentlemen deputies of departments to the legislative body,-The peace concluded with the Emperor of Austria has been since cemented by the happy alliance I have contracted-the birth of the King of Rome has fulfilled my wishes, and satisfies my people with respect to the future. "The affairs of religion have been too often mixed and sacrificed to the interests of a state of the third order. If half Europe has separated from the church of Rome, we may attribute it specially to the contradiction which has never ceased to exist between the truths and the principles of religion which belong to the whole uni verse, and the pretensions and interests which regarded only a very small corner of Italy. I have put an end to this scandal for ever. I have united Rome to the empire. I have given palaces to the popes at Rome and at Paris. If they have at heart the interests of religion, they will often sojourn in the centre of the affairs of christianity. It was thus that St. Peter preferred Rome to an abode even in the Holy Land. "Holland has been united to the Empire; she is but an emanation of it-without her the Empire would not be complete. "The principles adopted by the English go vernment not to recognise the neutrality of any flag, have obliged me to possess myself of the mouths of the Ems, the Weser, and the Elbe, and have rendered an interior communication with the Baltic indispensible to me. It is not my territory that I wished to increase, but my maritime means. "America is making efforts to cause the freedom of her flag to be recognised-I will second her. I have nothing but praises to give to the sovereigns of the confederation of the Rhine. "The union of the valais. has been foreseen ever since the act of mediation, and considered as necessary to conciliate the interests of Switzerland with the interests of France and Italy. "The English bring all the passions into play. One time they suppose France to have all the designs that could alarm other powers, designs which she could have put in execution if they had entered into her policy. At another time they make an appeal to the pride of nations, in order to excite their jealousy. They lay hold of all circumstances which arise out of the unexpected events of the times in which we are. It is war over every part of the continent that can alone ensure their prosperity. I wish for nothing that is not in the treaties I have concluded. I will never sacrifice the blood of my people to in terests that are not immediately the interests of my empire. I flatter myself that the peace of the continent will not be disturbed. "The King of Spain is come to assist at this last solemnity. I have given him all that was necessary and proper to unite the interests and hearts of the different people of his provinces. Since 1809, the greater part of the strong places in Spain have been taken after memorable sieges. The insurgents have been beat in a great num-. ber of pitched battles. England has felt that this war was approaching its termination, and that intrigues and gold were no longer sufficient to nourish it. She found herself therefore obliged to change the nature of it, and from an auxiliary she is become a principal. All she has of troops of the line have been sent into the PeninsulaEngland, Scotland, and Ireland, are drained. English blood has at length flowed in torrents, in several actions glorious to the French arms. This conflict against Carthage, which seemed as if it would be decided in fields of battle, on the ocean, or beyond the seas, will henceforth be decided in the plains of Spain! When England shall be exhausted, when she shall at last have felt the evils which for twenty years she has with so much cruelty poured upon the continent, when half her families shall be in mourning, then shall a peal of thunder put an end to the affairs of the Peninsula, the destinies of her armies, and avenge Europe and Asia by finishing this second Punic war. "Gentlemen deputies of departments to the legislative body, I have ordered my minister to lay before you the accounts of 1809 and 1810. It is the object for which I have called you together. You will see in them the prosperous state of my finances. Though I have placed within three months 100 millions extraordinary at the disposal of my ministers of war, to defray the expences of new armaments which then appeared necessary, I find myself in the fortunate situation of not having any new taxes to impose upon my people; I shall not increase any tax, I have no want of any augmentation in the imposts." The sitting being terminated, his majesty rose and retired amidst acclamations. In his speech at a meeting of a council of commerce, about the beginning of summer, Bonaparte still railed against England: "I have," said he, "deliberately weighed my resources with those of England-my situation with hers; and though the balance was decidedly in my favor, I have offered her peace upon honourable conditions. I have gone so far as even to offer to give up Holland. She was not at all disposed to listen; and I have proved to her, that though I menaced her with total ruin, I should advance nothing which I could not put in execution. I have the means of equipping many CHAP. X. 1811. fleets, and of repairing the losses and checks they BOOK IX. might experience. It was not with ambitious views that I have united all the coasts of the north with France; I owed it to the system of blockade which I have established by my decrees of Berlin, and which I desire to have observed with the most strict severity. See me, then, master of all the coasts of the Baltic. "Yes, sirs, I am, and always will be, the master of the Baltic. The Emperor of Russia has not, indeed, as yet caused my decrees to be observed in his ports; but he will, ere six months, or I declare war against him. Since Tilsit, what prevented my march to Petersburgh? that which I did not do, I can do yet. The struggle with England is distressing. I know it but the issue cannot be doubtful. My resources are real, they are from territorial revenues: and those of my enemy rest only on credit; and, of course, as illusory as the feeble basis of commercial operations on which they are founded. I have now in my coffers 200 millions, (he repeated, stamping with his feet,) 200 millions, which shall be better employed than in purchasing sugar, and coffee, and cocoa-they shall serve to sap the power of those who have these only for the representatives of power. I am not ignorant that in pursuing my system with vigour, many fortunes will be ruined: but they will be those only who have been so imprudent as to make speculations beyond their means, or have chosen to become the bankers and agents of England. Sons of Mr. Martin, sons of Andre, here present-you furnish an example. All those who follow the same course will have the same loss. If I was King of Bourdeaux, or of Marseilles, or indeed of Holland, I should act probably as others have done; but I am at the head of a great empire, and of a numerous population, and it is not for me to sacrifice the general good to serve a few towns. "All Europe has been too long tributary to England-her monopoly should be destroyed, and it shall be by me. If I was only Louis XIV. she might yet a long time contemn the force of France; but I have many more means than the greatest of her kings, and all shall be employed to effect her fall." Till the battles of Barrosa, Albuera, &c. revived the drooping cause, the patriots of Spain were evidently losing ground. The Spanish ar my It was truly gratifying to English feelings, that the insolent boast of the French emperor, that "England could not contend singly against France," was retorted upon him by the signal de feat of the French in Portugal. -- Proclamation of the Governors of the Kingdom of Portugal and of the Algarves. "Portuguese, The day of our glory is at last arrived; the troops of the enemy, in disgraceful flight, and routed on all points, rapidly disappear from the Portuguese territory, which they have infected with their presence. The governors of Portugal rejoice with you on this happy event; aud after humbling themselves in the presence of the Almighty, the first and sovereign author of all good, they render due thanks to his royal highness the prince-regent our lord, whose wisdom established the bases of our defence; to his British majesty, to his enlightened ministry, and to the whole British nation, in whom we have found powerful and liberal allies, the most constant cooperation in repelling the common enemy, and that honor, probity, and steadiness of principle which particularly characterise that great nation; to the illustrious Wellington, whose sagacity and consummate military knowledge enabled him to penetrate the plans of the enemy, to take the most effectual precautions for frustrating them, and compelled them at last to fly with the remains of their numerous army, diminished by famine, by the most severe privatious, and by the incessant pursuit of the allied forces; to the zealous and indefatigable Beresford, the restorer of discipline and organization to the Portuguese troops; to the brave and skilful generals and officers of both nations; to their brave comrades in arms, who, with generous emulation, never fought that they did not triumph; and, in fine, to the whole Portuguese people, whose loyalty, patriotism, constancy, and humanity, have been so gloriously distinguished amidst the tribulations which have afflicted us. "A nation possessed of such qualities can never be subdued; and the calamities of war, instead of disheartening, serve only to augment its enthusiasm, and to make it feel all the horror of the slavery with which it was threatened. "But, Portuguese, the lamentable effects of the invasion of those barbarians; the yet smoking remains of the bumble cottage of the poor, of the palace of the man of opulence, of the cell of the religious, of the hospital which afforded shelter and relief to the poor and infirm, of the temples dedicated to the worship of the Most High; the innocent blood of so many peaceful citizens of both sexes, and of all ages, with which those heaps of ruins are still tinged; the insults of every kind heaped upon those whom the Vandals did not deprive of life-insults many times more cruel than death itself; the universal devastation of the fields, of plantations, of cattle, and of the instru ments of agriculture; the robbery and destruction of every thing that the unhappy inhabitants of the invaded districts possessed;-this atrocious. scene, which makes humanity shudder, affords a terrible lesson, which you ought deeply to engrave on your memory, in order fully to know that degenerate nation, who retain only the figure of men, and who in every respect are worse than wild beasts, and more blood-thirsty than tygers or lions. Wretched are they who trust in their deceitful promises! Victims of a foolish credu lity, a thousand times will they repent, but with out avail, of the levity with which they have trusted to the promises of a nation without faith and without law; of men who acknowledge neither the rights of humanity, nor respect the sacred tie of an oath. Opposed to such an enemy, the only alternatives which remained to us were resistance or retreat; the former depended on a competent armed force, the latter is a law which the duty of preserving life and property imposes on all peaceful citizens. These evacuating the towns where they dwell, transporting the effects which they can carry off, destroying those which they are obliged to abandon, and which might serve for the subsistence of the enemy, escape the horrors of the most infamous slavery, throw themselves into the arms of their fellow-countrymen, who receive them as brothers, assist the military operations, depriving the invaders of the means of maintaining themselves in the territory which they occupied; and in this way they are so far useful to themselves, because the enemy, not being able to support himself for a long time in positions where he is in want of subsistence, will soon be obliged to evacuate them; and the inha bitants returning immediately to their homes, neither suffer the inconveniences of a lengthened absence, nor find their houses and fields in that state of total devastation, in which the enemy's army would have left them, had he remained for a longer period. "Such, Portuguese, are the lessons of expe rience which we ought never to forget. "But amidst such great disasters, Providence is pleased to give us sources of consolation which will make them less sensibly felt. "The unfortunate people who fled from the fury of their cruel oppressors have experienced the greatest kindness in the humanity of their fellow-citizens. In all the districts to which they have fled they were received with open arms; the inhabitants eagerly pressed to afford them all that succour which they could individually bestow; they filled their houses with emigrants; and many times have we perceived, with tears of joy, the generous emulation of those who disputed with one another who should afford the rights of hos pitality to those unknown families who arrived in this capital without shelter or the means of sub sistence. "It is the duty of the government to take immediate measures for the relief of these necessitous persons; but the want of public funds, which are not even sufficient to provide for our defence, must make these measures less effectual, unless individuals liberally concur in a proceeding as much recommended by humanity as by patriotism. "Under the inspection of an illustrious tribunal, which has advanced part of these succours, by the wise and economical measures of a member of that tribunal, executed by zealous and intelligent officers, the wretched fugitives have been fed, and numberless unfortunate persons have been rescued from the jaws of death. This great expence has been supported, not only by the resources which were at the disposal of government, but, still more by voluntary donations presented by natives and foreigners; among whom we ought to mention with particular distinction the subjects of his Britannic majesty, both those who are employed in the army, those who are attached to the legation, and those who are comprehended in the class of merchants. Those acts of patriotism and of Christian charity were not confined to the capital and its vicinity. In all the districts of the kingdom, whither the fugitives resorted, they met the same reception, and experienced the same kindness and liberal aid, as far as the ability of the inhabitants enabled them to extend it. "The governors of the kingdom, in the name of the prince-regent, return thanks to all for such distinguished services, by which the lives of so many of his subjects have been saved, and those calamities softened which were caused by the scourge of a destructive war. His royal highness will rejoice in being the sovereign of a people so loyal, patriotic, generous, and Christian. "It now only remains, to complete the work, to promote the restoration of the fugitives to their homes, to render habitable the towns which the barbarism of these spoilers has left covered with filth and unburied carcases; to relieve with medicine and food the sick who are perishing for want of such assistance, to give life to agriculture, by supplying the busbandman with seed-corn, as well as a little bread for his consumption for some time, and facilitating his means of purchasing cattle, and acquiring the instruments of agricul ture. "Such have been and are the constant cares of the governors of the kingdom. 66 Portuguese! tribulations are the crucible in which the merit of men is purified. You have passed through this ordeal, and the result has been glorious. You are become a great nation,-a nation worthy of those heroic progenitors who illustrated the cradle of the monarchy. Preserve 1811. unalterable these sentiments; confide in your go- BOOK IX. vernment, as your government confides in you; draw every day more closely the bonds of union CHAP. X. among yourselves, with other nations and with our generous allies, who are our true brothers. Let one soul, one will, direct our common efforts; and if any one attempt to sow discord, let us tear from our bosom the venomous viper, and let us seal with his blood the ratification of our indissoluble alliance. "Practise these maxims with the same constancy with which you have hitherto followed them, and you will be invincible. "The Bishop Cardinal elect, P. Souza. "RIC. RAIMUNDO NOGUEIRA. An important change in the policy of the northern powers, with respect to the continental system," seemed at this time probable. Denmark was the first to shew a disposition to relax the rigour of that system. In an arrangement between her and Sweden, she admitted conditions which were ostensibly, as well as virtually, in opposition to the principles imposed by France upon the continental powers. As far as depended upon Denmark, the commercial intercourse between Sweden and England was scarcely liable to interruption; for there was hardly a case of a Swedish vessel sailing either to or from England which would not fall within some of the provisions of the following decree, emitted by the court of Copenhagen: 1. All Swedish vessels, detained on account of the bill of sale not being on-board, shall be released without further process. 2. Every Swedish vessel, detained merely because her destination was an English port, but which is furnished with documents from the Swedish government, as well as Swedish vessels now returning from England, laden with salt, or which are returning in ballast, shall neither be detained nor condeinned. 3. Swedish vessels, which sailed for England before the declaration of war was known at the Swedish port from whence the vessel was dispatched, cannot be detained, much less condemned. 4. A Swedish vessel cannot be condemned merely for having used an English licence. 5. Swedish vessels suspected of having availed themselves of English convoys, cannot be condemned without proofs the most incontestible. An attack upon the island of Anholt, then in possession of the enemy, was intended to have been put in execution in the fall of 1810; but as the enemy's ships of war kept on their station. until the frost, and ice set in, this plan was given. |