Secret History of the Court of England, from the Accession of George the Third to the Death of George the Fourth, Volume 2 (of 2): Including, Among Other Important Matters, Full Particulars of the Mysterious Death of the Princess Charlotte — John Shaqi
Secret History of the Court of England, from the Accession of George the Third to the Death of George the Fourth, Volume 2 (of 2): Including, Among Other Important Matters, Full Particulars of the Mysterious Death of the Princess CharlotteHamilton, Anne, Lady
History
Secret History of the Court of England, from the Accession of George the Third to the Death of George the Fourth, Volume 2 (of 2): Including, Among Other Important Matters, Full Particulars of the Mysterious Death of the Princess Charlotte
Hamilton, Anne, Lady
Caroline, Queen, consort of George IV, King of Great Britain, 1768-1821; George III, King of Great Britain, 1738-1820 -- Relations with courts and courtiers; George IV, King of Great Britain, 1762-1830 -- Relations with courts and courtiers; Great Britain -- Court and courtiers -- History -- 18th ce
"When Castlereagh was at Chatillon with the ambassadors of the
allied powers, after some successes of mine, and when I had,
in a manner, invested the town, _he was greatly alarmed lest I
might seize him_ and make him _prisoner_. Not being accredited
as an ambassador, nor invested with any diplomatic character
to France, I might have taken him as an enemy. He went to
Caulincourt, to whom he mentioned that _he laboured under
considerable apprehensions that I should cause violent hands
to be laid upon him_, as he acknowledged I had a right to do.
It was impossible for him to get away without falling in with
my troops. Caulincourt replied, that as far as his opinion
went, he would say that I should not meddle with him; but that
he could not answer for what I might do. Immediately after, he
(Caulincourt) wrote to me what Castlereagh had said, and his
answer. I signified to him in reply, that he was to tell
Castlereagh to make his mind easy, and stay where he was: that
I would consider him as an ambassador. At Chatillon,
(continued Bonaparte) when speaking about the liberty enjoyed
in England, Castlereagh observed, in a contemptuous manner,
that it was not the thing most to be esteemed in England; that
it was an USAGE they were obliged to put up with; but that it
had become an abuse, and would not answer for other
countries."
It will thus be seen that GRATITUDE, at least, ought to have prompted
different conduct in Lord Castlereagh towards Napoleon; instead of
which, the charges brought against Sir Hudson Lowe by Mr. O'Meara
were not only deemed unworthy of inquiry, but his lordship actually
dismissed the accuser from the British service. Thus a deserving and
generous-minded officer was ruined, without even a hearing, for merely
attempting to do an act of justice to the exiled Emperor of France! The
charges against Sir Hudson Lowe, however, remained the same, and this
summary mode of revenge inflicted on Mr. O'Meara was not at all
calculated to acquit Lord Castlereagh from sharing in the accusation of
wantonly oppressing Napoleon. Could any thing tend more to criminate his
lordship than the sudden punishment of the accuser, while in the act of
preferring his complaint? Grant that Mr. O'Meara had misconducted
himself, and that he had thus given his employer a right to dismiss
him, surely he ought not, in common honesty, to have done so till he had
first given him every opportunity of making good his charges. His
lordship's readiness to stigmatize, and even silence him, in this
manner, wore any appearance but that of an honourable anxiety to meet
and to defy his adversary. We cannot devote space sufficient to bring
forward the charges of Mr. O'Meara; but the inquirer will find himself
amply repaid for his trouble by their perusal. As Sir Hudson Lowe can
only be looked upon as a cowardly ruffian, who scrupled not to _execute_
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.
Join the Discussion
Join the discussion
Sign in to leave a comment or review.
Sign InorCreate an account