duc d'Angoulême, elder son of the comte d'Artois. From Mittau, too, was
sent his well-known letter to Bonaparte (1799) calling upon him to play
the part of Monk, a proposal contemptuously refused (E. Daudet, _Hist.
de l'émigration_, ii. 371, 436), though Louis in turn declined to accept
a pension from Bonaparte, and later, in 1803, though his fortunes were
at their lowest ebb, refused to abdicate at his suggestion and accept an
indemnity.
Suddenly expelled from Mittau in 1801 by the capricious Paul I., Louis
made his way, in the depth of winter, to Warsaw, where he stayed for
three years. All this time he was trying to convert France to the
royalist cause, and had a "_conseil royal_" in Paris, founded at the end
of 1799 by Royer-Collard, Montesquiou and Clermont-Gallerande, the
actions of which were much impeded by the activity of the rival
committee of the comte d'Artois (see E. Daudet, _op. cit._ ii., and
Remâcle, _Bonaparte et les Bourbons_, Paris, 1899), but after 1800, and
still more after the failure of the royalist conspiracy of Cadoudal,
Pichegru and Moreau, followed by the execution of the duc d'Enghien
(March 1804), and the assumption by Napoleon of the title of emperor
(May 1804), the royalist cause appeared quite hopeless. In September
1804 Louis met the comte d'Artois at Calmar in Sweden, and they issued a
protest against Napoleon's action, but being warned that he must not
return to Poland, he gained permission from Alexander I. again to retire
to Mittau. After Tilsit, however (1807), he was again forced to depart,
and took refuge in England, where he stayed first at Gosfield in Essex,
and afterwards (1809 onwards) at Hartwell in Buckinghamshire. In 1810
his wife died, and in 1811 d'Avaray died, his place as favourite being
taken by the comte de Blacas.[8] After Napoleon's defeats in 1813 the
hopes of the royalists revived, and Louis issued a fresh manifesto, in
which he promised to recognize the results of the Revolution.
Negotiations were also opened with Bernadotte, who seemed willing to
support his cause, but was really playing for his own hand.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
Reviews
Reviews
No reviews yet
Be the first to share your thoughts on this work.
Elsewhere in the archive
Join the Discussion
Join the discussion
Sign in to leave a comment or review.
Sign InorCreate an account