Blackwood's Edinburgh Magazine, Volume 65, No. 403, May, 1849Various
History
Blackwood's Edinburgh Magazine, Volume 65, No. 403, May, 1849
Various
England -- Periodicals; Scotland -- Periodicals
"I was ignorant what title to give to the prince; and, having
come to seek him under his own roof, I was naturally desirous
to do what was customary, neither more nor less. I asked M.
de Levis. 'There is no etiquette here,' he replied; 'we are
exiles. We address the prince, however, as _Monseigneur_.' I
took the hint; and, although little accustomed to the
language of courts, I hope I did what was _convenable_ under
the circumstances. I ought to confess, at the same time, that
I was afterwards less happy with the Duchess of Bordeaux, and
the Duchess of Angoulême, to whom I sometimes gave the title
of 'Highness.' Now, it struck me afterwards, that this title,
which was a deference on my part, must have appeared to them
both a want of respect, and a direct denial of their supposed
rights; to the one, because she considers herself queen since
her marriage with the descendant of Henri IV., who, in her
eyes, is necessarily Henri V.; to the other, because she
considers herself to have been queen also in virtue of the
abdication of Charles X.; and the fact is, that, even in her
presence, the inhabitants of Frohsdorf call her, among
themselves, the Queen."
The most remarkable part of the book, in a political point of
view--that, in fact, which has produced in France the sensation
already alluded to among all parties--now follows. We must quote M.
Didier verbally:--
"_Monsieur le Duc de Bordeaux_ occupies the ground-floor of
the chateau. He received me in a study simply furnished,
which looks out upon the distant hills of Hungary. I remarked
a collection of guns, and an arm-chair entirely made of
deer-skin, the horns forming the arms and back. The prince
was standing by a writing-table, placed in the middle of the
room, with one hand resting upon his arm-chair. He neither
sat down, nor bade me be seated, at first; and his reception
of me was not exempt from a sort of solemnity. In a word, he
received me _en roi_. Habituated to the visits of his
partisans, and of his partisans alone, I was a novelty to
him. He knew no more of me than my opinions, and some works,
the matter of which could evidently not be to his taste.
Perhaps he expected to find in me one of those furious
democrats, who, to use a common phrase, _mettent les pieds
dans les plats_, and supposed that I might attack him
coarsely. Hence his reserve at first. It was very evident
that he stood on the defensive, and waited to see me advance.
His inquiring and somewhat strained look expressed, at least
so I read it, what I have here said. After a few trivial
remarks, the necessary preamble of every visit, and
especially of such a one, he begged me to be seated, and the
conversation commenced. As far as I can recollect, the
following was the first serious remark I addressed to
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