A congress opened at Châtillon on February 5, 1814, to treat with Napoleon as sovereign of France. The allies, however, found his demands impossible, and before the Congress was dissolved, the Treaty of Chaumont had been signed, by which Napoleon lost all chance of obtaining the terms that the allies were at first prepared to grant. Chauffeurs. Bands of brigands, who in 1793 infested the northern and afterwards the central departments of France. They took their name from their habit of roasting the feet of their victims, to force them to disclose the whereabouts of their valuables. Chaumont, Treaty of. A treaty signed by England, Austria, Russia and Prussia, in March, 1814, after the allies had entered France. The signatories bound themselves for twenty years to unite in resisting the designs of France. Each of the contracting parties was to provide 150,000 men, and England in addition a subsidy of £5,000,000. It was the knowledge of the signature of this treaty which induced Joseph, in Napoleon’s absence, to order the Marshals to capitulate, and the army to leave Paris, thus entailing the abdication of the Emperor. Chauvinism. Originally an unreasoning admiration for Napoleon, the name being taken from Chauvin, a character in Scribe’s “Le Soldat Laboureur.” At the present time, the word has lost its dynastic significance, and is used to express a perfervid patriotism, somewhat corresponding to the English Jingoism. Chefoo Convention. A convention between Great Britain and China, negotiated by Sir Thomas Wade in 1876, by which China recognized the right of foreigners to travel in the interior, and to be duly protected while so doing. Chester, County Palatine of. A County Palatine, established by William the Conqueror, who bestowed it on his nephew, Hugh Lupus. The earldom was seized by Henry III in 1237, and has since been an appanage of the crown. Chevalier Sans Peur et sans Reproche. Pierre du Terrail, Seigneur de Bayard (1476-1524), is called by his biographer “the fearless and stainless knight.” Chevaliers du Poignard. A band of royalists, who, armed with daggers and hunting knives, assembled at the Tuileries on February 28, 1791. They were dispersed and disarmed by Lafayette, and being charged with a conspiracy to carry off the king, maintained that they were assembled only for his protection. Chiltern Hundreds. The Hundreds of Bodenham, Desborough, and Stoke, in Buckinghamshire, the stewardship of which is a sinecure, in the gift of the crown, originally established to keep down the bands of robbers which infested the Chiltern Hills. It is now used as a means of enabling a member of Parliament to vacate his seat, as by accepting the office he becomes disqualified for a seat in Parliament, unless re-elected. Chimney Money. _See_ Hearth Money. Chinandega, Pacto de.