m. M. % \'J^ t^r..n,^<^^ t-"-*^^ c. p. /£> r The Life of Marie Amelie /^tA.ty< -«^ ^^i^^t*- '>?'^<^^/€?€^>0€my^f y^A/^. The Life of Marie Amelie U Last Queen of the French 1782-1866 With some Account of the Principal Personages at the Courts of Naples and France in her time, and of the Careers of her Sons and Daughters By C. C. Dyson Author of " Madame de Maintenon ; Her Life and Times " With Photogravure Portrait, and Twenty-four other Portraits and Illustrations NEW YORK D. APPLETON AND COMPANY 1910 LIST OF AUTHORITIES ON WHICH THIS "LIFE OF MARIE Am£lIE"IS FOUNDED " Historian's History of the World." 24 vols. 1908. " Times." "Vie de Marie Amelie." Par M. Trognon. Paris, 1871. " Les Femmes du Tuileries." Par Imbert St. Amand. '* Marie Amelie a la Cour de Tuileries." Par Imbert St. Amand. 1893. "Marie Amelie et la Duchesse d'Orleans." Par Imbert St. Amand. 1892. " La Duchesse de Berry a la Cour de Charles X." Par Imbert St. Amand. " La Duchesse de Berry dans la Vendee." Par Imbert St. Amand. 1892. "Memoirs of Louis XVIII." By himself. Edited by Lamotte Houdancourt. 1832. " Correspondance Privee de Louis XVIII." 1836. *' Men Journal." Par Louis Philippe Due d'Orleans. 1815. " Philippe :6galite et M. Chiappini." Par M. Vitrae. 1907. "Louis Philippe d'Orleans ou Chiappini." Par M. Dumont. 1890. "The Mystery of Stella Lady Newborough." By Sir Ralph Payne Gallwey. 1907. " jfichange Criminelle. Memoires de Maria Stella." 1848. 5 LIST OF AUTHORITIES " Les Princes d'Orleans." By M. Yriarte. 1872. " Life of Nelson." By Pettigrew. 1849. " The Queen of Naples and Lord Nelson." By Jeaffreson. 1889. "The Queen of Naples and Lady Hamilton." By Jeaffreson. 1890. " History of Kingdom of Naples." By General P. Colletta. Trans- lated by E. Horner. 1858. "Vie de Marie Caroline, Reine des Deux Siciles." Par M. Gagniere. 1886. "Journal of Miss Cornelia Knight." 1802. " Memoirs of the Courts of Europe at Close of Eighteenth Century," By A. Swinburne. 2 vols. " Les Memoires de Mme. Vigee le Brun." " Memoires de Mme. de Genlis." 1808. " L'Idylle d'un Gouverneur." 1904. Par M. Maugras. " La Fille de Louis XVI." Par G. le Notre. 1908. "L'Histoirede I'Emigration." 2 vols. E. Daudet. 1889. " La Revolution de 1848." Par A. de Lamartine. 2 vols. 1870. *' Le Due de Nemours." Par Renee Bazin, de I'Academie Frangais. Paris. 1907. "En Marge de notre Histoire." Par Baron de Maricourt. 1906. " Les Enfants du Due de Berry." D'apr6s des documents inedits. Par Vicomte de Reiset. 1905. "Adelaide d'Orleans, I'Egerie de Louis Philippe." D'apres docu- ments inedits. Par Raoul Armaud. 1908. " The Letters of Queen Victoria." 1907. "The Romance of Savoy." By Marchesa Vitteleschi. 1908. " Les Reines de I'Emigration." Par Vicomte de Reiset. Paris. 1907. LIST OF AUTHORITIES " Memoires de la Comtesse de Boigne." 1907. " Vieux Souvenirs." Du Prince de Joinville. 1905. "Journal de Cuvillier Fleury." 1889. "Dix ans ^ la Cour de Louis Philippe." Par M. Appert. 1886. " Les Secrets des Bourbons." 1882. " Les derniers Bourbons." Par M. Nauny, 1883. "Prince Talleyrand et la Maison d'Orleans." Par la Comtesse de Mirabeau. 1890. " Les Favorites de Louis XVIII." Par M. Turquan. 1900. " Portrait de Louis Philippe." Par M. Dumesnil. 1848. " Life and Times of Louis Philippe." By A. E. Douglas. 1870. " Memoii-es de M. Claude, Chef de Police sous Louis Philippe." Paris. 1881. CONTENTS CHAPTER I. PAGE Notes on the History of the Kingdom of the Two Sicilies — The Reign of Ferdinando IV. and Maria Carolina, parents of Marie Amelie, Qvieen of the French 15 CHAPTER II. Marie Amelie's Home at Naples — Her Childhood — Betrothal to Marie Antoinette's Son the Dauphin — His Death — Her Girlhood — Her Brothers and Sisters — Lord Nelson at the Court of Naples — Arrival of French Army — Flight of Royal Family from Naples 29 CHAPTER III. Flight of the King and Queen to Sicily — Their Life there with their Family — Visit of the Queen and her Daughters to Austria — Return to Naples — Second Flight to Sicily — Arrival in the Island of Louis Philippe, Due d'Orleans, Future Husband of Marie Amelie 50 CHAPTER IV. Notes on the Life of Louis Philippe, Due d'Orleans, and his Family — His Political Opinions — His Home, Education, Adventures— His Father's Fate— The French Revolution - 73 9 CONTENTS CHAPTER V. PAOB Life of Louis Philippe after the execution of his Father — Exile in America and England — Visits Sicily— Prejudice against him — Becomes engaged to the Princess Marie Amelie, daughter of the King and Queen of the Two Sicilies — Marriage and life in Sicily — Fall of Napoleon and Restora- tion of Louis XVIII. — The Due d'Orleans returns to France 100 CHAPTER VI. Restoration of Louis XVIII. — His Character — Comte d'Artois — " Monsieur " — Madame Royale — The Due d'Orleans pre- sents his Wife and Family at Court — The Manner of their Reception — King's Opinion of Marie Amelie - - - 116 CHAPTER VII. Life at the Palais Royal— The Hundred Days— The Life of the d'Orleans Family in England— Louis XVIII.'s Opinion of the Due d'Orleans— His Return to France with his Family 136 CHAPTER VIII. Life at the Palais Royal— General Admiration felt for Marie Amelie— The Education of her Sons— The Marriage of the Due de Berry to Marie Amelie's Niece— The Assassination of the Due de Berry— The Birth of the Due de Bordeaux - 153 CHAPTER IX. Death of Louis XVIII.— Accession of Charles X.— Favour shown by new King to the Due d'Orleans- The Happiest Years of Marie Amelie's Life— Wealth of the d'Orleans Family — Marie Amelie's Journey to Savoy to Visit her Sister the Queen of Sardinia — Visit of Neapolitan Royal Family to Paris— Splendid Fete at the Palais Royal - 168 10 CONTENTS CHAPTER X. PAOB Character of Adelaide d'Orleaus, Sister of Louis Philippe — The Important Part she played in the Revolution of 1830, and the July Monarchy — Abdication of Charles X. — Charac- ter of Louis Philippe — Opinion of Europe — He is declared King of the French ........ i8i CHAPTER XI. Disturbances and Insurrections — Life of Marie Amelie and Louis Philippe as King and Queen of the French — King's Motives for accepting Crown — Public Opinion on Marie Amelie — Her Reluctance to accept Crown — The Duchesse de Berry's Attempt to raise an Insurrection in favour of her Son — Her Imprisonment at Blaye 201 CHAPTER XII. Louis Philippe as Statesman — The xldmiration of his Ministers — The Great Benefits he Conferred on France — The Charities of Marie Amelie — Marie Amelie's Distinguished Sons — Her Letters to them — The Marriages of the Due d'Orleans and Due de Nemours — Bravery of the whole d'Orleans Family — Attempts on Life of Louis Philippe 226 CHAPTER XIII. Notes on Marie Amelie's Sons — Their Characters and Careers {Continued) — Marriages of her Daughters — Sudden Death of Due d'Orleans, Heir to the Throne — Opinion of Europe — Effect on Dynasty — Sorrow of Marie Amelie — Subsequent Life at Tuileries (Routine of) — Marie Amelie's Daughters- in-law 246 CHAPTER XIV. Visit of Queen Victoria to France — Visit of Louis Philippe to England— Death of Madame Adelaide — Disturbed State of France — Revolution of 1848 — Abdication and Flight of King and Queen 260 11 CONTENTS CHAPTER XV. PAGE Arrival of the King and Queen in England, followed by that of other Members of the Family — Their Adventures m route — Kindness of Queen Victoria, who gives them a Residence at Claremont — Life at Claremont — Opinion of Europe as to Abdication — Death of Louis Philippe — Marie Amelie's Visits to the Continent — Her Meeting with the Comte de Chambord — Death of the Duchesse de Nemours — Celebra- tion of Marie Amelie's seventy-fifth Birthday - . . 284 CHAPTER XVI. Death of Duchesse de Nemours and Duchesse d'Orleans — Marie Amelie's Interest in the Education of her Grandchildren — Her Grandsons enter the Spanish Army — Field Sports at Claremont — The Royal Choir — The Princes go to America and Take Part in the Civil War — Marriages in the Family — Last Illness and Death of the Queen — Notes on the Sub- sequent Fate of her Descendants 301 END 12 LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS Peincesse Marie Amelik de Boukbon-Naples - - Frontispiece From portrait iu Musee de Versailles by Mme. Vigee le Brun. FACING PAOK King Ferdlnaj^do IV. of Naples at his Accession - - - 20 From portrait by A. R. Mengs in National Museum, Naples. PaIiAzzo di Casbrta - - - - 30 From photo by G. Brogi, Naples. BllNG FeRDINANDO IV. AND QuEEN MaRIA CAROLINA WITH THEIR Family ----- 34 From painting by Angelica Kaufmann in the Capodimonte Museum, Naples. Fountains in Palace Grounds at Caserta 46 Photographed by E. Brogi, Naples. Chapel in Royal Palace at Palermo 104 By E. Brogi, Naples. Palazzo d'Orleans, Palermo 108 By E. Brogi, Naples. King Louis XVIII. 116 From print in British Museum. CoMTESSE de Provence, Wife of Louis XVIII. - - - - 118 From print in British Museum. Marie Therese de Bourbon, Madame Royale - - . - 128 From print in British Museum. Marie Amelie, Duchesse d"Orleans, and the Due de Chartres 138 From portrait by M. David in Capodimonte Museum, Naples. Duchesse d'Angouleme (Madame Royale) ----- 154 From print in British Museum. 13 LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS FACING PAGB Ferdinand, Due de Chahtres 162 Fkan^ois, Prince de Joinville 164 Louis Charles, Due de Nemours 166 Henri, Due d'Aumale 168 Antoine, Due de Montpensier 174 The portraits of these five brothers are all reproduced from paint- ings by A. Dubois Drahonnet in the Capodimonte Museum, Naples. Charles X. - 170 From print in British Museum. Princesse Clementine d'Orleans 176 From portrait by A. Dubois Drahonnet in Capodimonte Museum, Naples. Madame Adelaide, Sister of Kjng Louis Philippe - - - 182 From portrait in Cabinet des Estampes, Biblioth^que Nationale, Paris. DUCHESSE DE Berry 216 From print in British Museum. King Louis Philippe 226 From print in British Museum. Queen Marie Amelie 230 From portrait by Winterhalter in Windsor Castle. Princesse Louise d'Orleans, Queen of the Belgians - - 250 From painting by A. Dubois Drahonnet in Capodimonte Museum, Naples. Princesse Marie d'Orleans - - 252 From painting by A. Dubois Drahonnet in Capodimonte Museum, Naples. t U CHAPTER I. Notes on the History of the Kingdom of the Two Sicihes — The Keign of Ferdinando IV. and Maria Carolina, parents of Marie Am6Ue, Queen of the French. It would be difficult to find in history a royal lady whose life is fuller of interest than that of Marie Am^lie, last Queen of the French, on account of the varied scenes through which she passed, and her connection with so many personages who played an important part in the history of Europe in the eight- eenth and beginning of nineteenth century. She was in fact a link between the old regime and the modern world. Yet while the name of her pre- decessor Marie Antoinette (the last to bear the title of Queen of France, as distinct from Queen of the French, assumed by the later occupant of the French throne) is a household word all over the world, few of the general public have a clear idea of who Marie Amelie was, or when she lived. She was granddaughter of the great Empress of Austria, Maria Theresa ; niece of Marie Antoinette ; aunt of the Archduchess Marie Louise, Napoleon's second wife ; and she lived, as wife of Louis Philippe d'Orl^ans, last King of the French, to enjoy the friendship of Queen Victoria, in whose kingdom the 15 THE LIFE OF MAKIE AMELIE last eighteen years of her life were spent. ^ Marie Amelie was the fourth daughter of Ferdinand, fourth king of the Two Sicilies, and his wife Maria Carolina Charlotte, thirteenth of the sixteen children born to Maria Theresa, Queen of Hungary and Empress of Austria and her husband Francis of Lorraine, Duke of Tuscany. Maria Carolina was the seventh daughter ; she had one younger sister, the unfortunate Marie Antoinette, who became Queen of France. The Kingdom of the two Sicilies consists of the island of Sicily, divided from the Italian Peninsula by the narrow Straits of Messina,^ and that part of Italy which extends from the extreme south of the penin- sula in 38° up to 41°. The continental part of the Sicilian kingdom contains the provinces of Calabria, Apulia, Basilicata and Campania, where the capital, Naples, is situated. Sicily had been part of the Byzantine empire till the latter part of the ninth century, when it was wrested from the Emperor Michael by the Saracens. It remained in their hands till the eleventh century, when the Normans under Koger Guiscard drove out the Saracens. Roger Guiscard was son of the cele- brated Norman Count, Tancred ; it took him many years of hard fighting to establish his sovereignty over ^ On Marie Am61ie's grandson, Prince Ferdinando of Bulgaria, the eyes of Europe have lately turned, since he has assured the in- dependence of his dominions and assumed the title of Tsar. 2 Messina had been the starting-point for the Crusades. In 1189 Richard I., Cour de Lion, and Philippe Augustus of France, wintered there, and he then and there wooed and wedded his wife, Berengaria of Navarre. 16 THE LIFE OF MARIE AMELIE the richest island in the Mediterranean. He became the father of a line of kings, but the Saracens were maintained in the enjoyment of their religion and property and retained a preponderating influence during the reign of Roger's son and grandson, who adopted many of their customs, and the islanders long retained a tincture of orientalism in their habits. In 1198 Frederick II., Emperor of Germany, drove out the Normans, and his descendants ruled in Sicily till they in turn were driven out by Charles of Anjou, brother of Louis IX. of France, who was crowned king in 1266. In 1275 Pedro of Aragon, who had married the daughter of Manfred, one of the Austrian line of Sicilian kings, laid claim to the kingdom, and in- stigated by him the terrible massacre of the French, known as the Sicilian Vespers, took place at Palermo in 1282. It was excited by a French soldier insulting a young Sicilian bride, who, accompanied by her relatives, was on her way to church for the wedding ceremony. The indignation of the spectators soon spread through the city. At the time the bells of the churches were ringing for vespers, the people answered by the cry : "To arms ! Death to the French ! " The French wherever found were mas- sacred ; in a few hours more than 4,000 met their death. Every town in Sicily followed the example of Palermo and the French tyranny was overthrown. The Kingdom of Sicily was separated from that of Naples ; Pedro of Aragon obtained the crown of the former, and Charles of Anjou the dominions on the 17 2 THE LIFE OF MARIE AMELIE mainland, then called the Kingdom of Naples. From this time onwards, up till 1503, there were incessant wars between the House of Aragon in Sicily and the House of Anjou in Naples. In that year the Span- ish armies completely routed the French, peace was made between France and Spain, and the two King- doms of Sicily were united under the Spanish king, Ferdinando III, The continental portion of the Kingdom of the Two Sicilies was thereafter not called the Kingdom of Naples — it was known as " Sicily on this side of the Pharos " (referring to the lighthouse at Messina) and the island portion was called : ** Sicily beyond the Pharos ". In 1516 King Ferdinando died and was succeeded by his grandson, Charles V., Emperor of Germany, and Sicily became part of the Holy Roman Empire. When his son Philip married the English Princess Mary Tudor, Charles gave him the title of King of Naples. When Philip succeeded his father, Sicily became merely a Spanish Province, and remained so till the year 1700, when Philip, Due d' Anjou, grand- son of Louis XIV. of France, succeeded to the throne of Spain. The Two Sicilies acknowledged him, but his ascent of the Spanish throne was the signal for the thirteen years of European warfare known as the War of the Spanish Succession, during which Austria, in alliance with other powers, disputed his claim. This war was ended bv the Peace of Utrecht, 1713, when the Archduke Charles of Austria received the dominions of Sicily "this side the Pharos," of 18 THE LIFE OF MARIE AMELIE which Naples was the capital, and to the Duke of Savoy was given the island of Sicily. In 1733 Philip V. of Spain entered into a league with France and Sardinia to drive the Austrians from Italy, on condition that the Kingdom of the Two Sici- lies should be given to his younger son Charles, Duke of Parma. This war was ended by the Treaty of Vienna, 1735, by which Charles gave up the Duchy of Parma and received the crown of the Two Sicilies. This was the commencement of the Bourbon Dynasty in Sicily, though it might be called a return to the old Angevin Dynasty, for the House of Anjou had reigned in Sicily till 1503, and now after a lapse of 250 years a son of a Due d'Anjou (who had become Philip of Spain) was again King of Sicily. By the Treaty of Vienna it was settled that the Crowns of Spain and Sicily should never be worn by one head ; so when, by the death of his elder brother Ferdinando VI. without children, Charles succeeded to the Crown of Spain, he was obliged to give up Sicily to his third son Ferdinando, for the eldest son was imbecile, and the second now became heir-pre- sumptive of Spain. The Sicilians had become strongly attached to Charles who had been Charles VII. of Sicily, and now became Charles III. of Spain. He was the son of Elizabeth Farnese, second wife of Philip V. of Spain, and had inherited much of her intellectual power together with the asceticism of his father. The Spanish Bourbons, unlike their French re- latives, were remarkable for their austere lives and 19 THE LIFE OF MARIE AMELIE elevated characters. Charles III. was entirely devoted to his beautiful wife Elizabeth of Saxony, and during a long widowhood remained absolutely faithful to her memory. Under his rule the people of Spain enjoyed a period of prosperity to which they had long been strangers ; they named him Charles the Good. The historian Hume calls him the only really great and patriotic king that Providence vouchsafed to Spain in modern times. Much is told also of his lovableness in private life. On his death-bed, asked if he forgave his enemies, he said : " Why should I wait till now ? They were forgiven the moment after the offence." It is to be regretted that his son Ferdin- ando IV., King of the Two Sicilies, inherited neither his intellectual powers nor his other fine qualities. When his father was called to the Spanish throne Ferdinando was only nine years old, and a Council of Regency was appointed to govern in his name, of whom the Minister Tanucci was the leading spirit though Charles continued to exercise a decisive in- fluence over the Sicilian Government during his son's minority. Insanity was hereditary in the family of the Spanish Bourbons, and Charles III. (whose father and eldest son had inherited the curse) was anxious to do all he could to prevent its appearance in his other children, and when appointing the Prince of San Nicandro as governor to the young King he gave orders that Ferdinando's brain should not be taxed by too much study. San Nicandro was an unfortunate choice, he was destitute of ability or knowledge and his young charge grew up in colossal ignorance of 20 King Ferdinando TV at his Accession To face i). 20 THE LIFE OF MAllIE AMELIE everything but outdoor sports, and caring only for low company and contemptible amusements. In early life he was good-natured and easy-going, but in after life the hereditary curse of his family showed itself in acts of ferocity and tyranny, which have rendered his name odious to posterity. Tanucci, the Prime Minister, being anxious to keep the power as long as possible in his own hands, was not displeased to see the young King such as he was. When he was sixteen years old it became necessary to think of marrying him. In those days immense importance was attached to matrimonial alliances, and the great Empress Maria Theresa had long ago decided, and entered into an agreement with the King of Spain, that one of her daughters should be betrothed to the young King of Sicily. The fifth daughter, the Archduchess Josepha, was chosen, a costly trousseau was prepared, and everything was ready for the departure of the young Archduchess to her future husband's kingdom, where the marriage was to be celebrated. Before starting she had to visit the tomb of her father, the late Emperor Francis, in the vaults of the Capuchin Church at Vienna — this was a ceremony insisted on by the Empress. The bier of Josepha's sister-in-law, the young Empress, who had died four months before of virulent small-pox, was also in the vault. Soon after she returned to the palace the young Archduchess complained of feeling ill ; next day small-pox declared itself, and of this fell disease she died on 15th October, 1767, the very day on which she was to have started for Sicily. 21 THE LIFE OF MARIE AMELIE The King of Spain was very anxious for the Aus- trian alliance, and as soon as he heard of Josepha's death he wrote to the Empress proposing that another of her daughters should become Queen of Sicily. The seventh daughter, Maria Carolina Charlotte, was now selected by the Empress as a wife for Fer- dinando. She was of a suitable age, being at this time fifteen years old, a year and some months younger than Ferdinando. About this time her mother wrote her the following letter of advice : " You are now fif- teen years old and I do not intend to treat you any longer as a child ; if you make a good use of the talents with which God has so richly endowed you, you will earn the approbation of your family and the world in general. But I am sorry to hear that you say your prayers carelessly and without reverence. Do not be surprised if after such a beginning of the day nothing goes well. You must treat your house- hold with gentleness, else you will never be esteemed, much less loved. You must work hard at your music, drawing, history, geography, Latin and other studies. If you will take my advice, which comes from a heart filled with love for my children and desiring their happiness, you will realise that the only path to follow is that of virtue. With God's help one can do much, but in order to obtain it one must lead an innocent life." And yet the Empress did not shrink from sending this young maiden unprotected to rule over a corrupt southern Court and to become the wife of a vicious un- educated boy of low tastes, and uncontrolled passions, 22 THE LIFE OF MARIE AMELIE whose conversation, ideas and habits must have been equally surprising and shocking to her. Maria Carolina had heard enough about Ferdi- nando to have no wish to become his wife ; she re- monstrated, cried, entreated, but it was all of no avail. To Naples she had to go, after having first been married by proxy in Vienna on 17th April, 1768. The Empress had said of Maria Carolina : '* Of all my daughters she is the one who resembles me most ". She felt that if all was to go well at Naples Maria Carolina must rule both her husband and the king- dom, and she perceived in her the capacity to do both. She impressed on the young girl that if she could not love her husband she must on no account let him per- ceive it, but act as if she were devoted to him and in this way establish her influence. A few weeks after her marriage, which took place at Caserta on 13th May, 1768, the young bride in writing to her old governess describes the early days of her married life as " a martyrdom, all the worse because one has to ap- pear pleased. If religion had not said to me * think of God,' I would have killed myself. I was in de- spair." Yet she learned to tolerate her husband and even to feel affection for him, and she certainly ob- tained unbounded influence over him. He fell deeply in love with his young wife, who was tall, slight and very handsome. Her brother, the Emperor Leopold, went to visit her after she had been married two years and reported to their mother as follows : " She has good inclinations, remarkable truthfulness, much 23 THE LIFE OF MARIE AMELIE cleverness and penetration. She is not the least bit of a flirt, and is always simply dressed. She is unaffectedly religious, saying her prayers, attending mass and reading books of devotion daily. Her rooms are well arranged and neatly kept." The young Queen's salon was soon frequented, not only by nobles and courtiers but by all the most learned and intellectual people, old and young, in Naples, and into their discussions she entered with enthusiasm. She also interested herself with schemes for reduction of taxes, reclaiming waste lands, plant- ing colonies on uninhabited islands, establishing schools, botanical gardens and museums, libraries, and improving universities. Maria Carolina was the only one of the great Empress's daughters who in- herited her governing instinct and strength of charac- ter. The young King amused himself, and left all business to his Minister Tanucci ; but after a few years Maria Carolina gained the ascendency and ruled with absolute authority. So many different races, Greeks, Frenchmen, Ger- mans, Spaniards, Saracens, had disputed the posses- sion of Sicily and left their traces among its inhabitants, that Sicilians could not be called a nation, though the various conquerors formed the two Sicilies into a kingdom. In the end the Latin element triumphed over the others, Norman, French and Arabic died out and the speech of Lombardy became the dialect of the Sicilians. But a population descended from such a mixture of races and composed of such heterogeneous elements could not fail to be difficult to govern. 24 THE LIFE OF MARIE AMELIE Tanucci had governed as if Sicily were a province of Spain, but the Queen overthrew the Spanish influence. It had been one of the clauses in her marriage con- tract that after the Queen of the Two Sicilies had borne an heir to the throne she should have the right to sit in Councils of State and vote. Tanucci opposed this, and Maria Carolina never rested till she had brought about his dismissal. The military forces of the kingdom had dwindled away through neglect, and the Queen turned her atten- tion to improving them and also took steps to create a navy to protect the coasts from the Corsairs of Barbary and from European enemies, especially the French. She obtained from her brother the services of Acton, an Englishman who had organised the Tuscan marine, a most able man under whose supervision the Sicilian army and navy were increased and made efficient. Maria Carolina had been brought up to believe in the Divine Eight of Kings over their people, and in the responsibility of the Rulers to God for the welfare of the people committed to their charge, and many of her most trusted friends were imbued with the new ideas of the Rights of Man and inspired her with an ardent desire to improve the moral and material con- dition of her subjects, though she did not dream of giving them a voice in the conduct of affairs. In no part of Italy were the laws worse or more oppressive, and the privileges of the nobles more a menace to Crown and people, the taxes more heavy than in Sicily. To redress all grievances would have been a task beyond the powers of the wisest and most 25 THE LIFE OF MARIE AMELIE experienced statesmen, and certainly a young inex- perienced woman could not compass it ; but Maria Carolina did what she could. Ferdinando, her hus- band, had an unbounded admiration for her abilities, and soon got into the habit of saying, when applied to for his opinion on aififairs of State : " Ask my wife, she knows everything ! " A strong revolutionary party existed in Naples, and when the Queen saw what views such as theirs had led to in France and that the high-minded pioneers of the movement were swamped by their followers, to the mass of whom Liberty, Equality and Fraternity meant getting possession of other people's property and an unrestrained course of violence, lust and murder, she set her face against it and organised a secret police to keep her acquainted with the plans of the Revolutionary Party. She carried on preparations for war which seemed inevitable when Sicily refused to accept an ambassador from the French Convention. In 1792 a French squadron appeared in the Bay of Naples, and the Queen arranged a coup d'etat by which all those who were engaged in conspiracy, or carrying on treasonable negotiations with France, were seized in one night and carried to the underground fortress at St. Elmo to await trial. Were the Queen and Government to blame for protecting themselves and the loyal portion of their subjects from those who were preparing to attack and destroy them ? For this action Maria Carolina has been loaded with abuse by some writers. Indeed, no queen of 26 THE LIFE OF MARIE AMELIE modern times has been more vilified, or has had more aspersions cast upon her character, her pubHc action, and private Hfe than has Maria Carolina. A careful examination of the accusations made against her lead to the conclusion that for the most part they are not proven, and that her reputation as a faithful wife and virtuous woman is intact. She was one of Napoleon's most active enemies, and in order to destroy her influence at Naples, where he supplanted her on the throne first by his brother Joseph and then by his sister Carolina Murat, he encouraged the circulation of calumnies about her, in the same way and for the same purpose as he had done in the case of the saintly Queen Louisa of Prus- sia. Many of the accusations of immoral conduct published concerning her were at a time when she was a white-haired woman, bowed down with sorrow, broken in health, partially paralysed, and in circum- stances which made such conduct physically and morally impossible. Maria Carolina was high-spirited and ambitious and made political mistakes, but she was not an immoral woman. In her youth she was very beautiful, and had a keen appetite for the enjoy- ments suited to her high position. Her husband was an illiterate boor, and notoriously unfaithful to his marriage vows, always occupied with some low amour ; and doubtless Maria Carolina took pleasure in the society of clever, intellectual men, and the admiration they could not have failed to show for her ; but a woman who worked so hard as she did at the planning and execution of schemes for the welfare of her people and 27 THE LIFE OF MAKIE AMELIE their higher interests, who was so much occupied with the care of, and education of her numerous children, who was so steadily kind and considerate to the poor and ignorant, so strict in religious observances, so royally generous to friends and servants, so beloved and respected by her sons and daughters, could not have been other than a high-minded, conscientious woman.^ In spite of his gross life and neglect of all duties, many writers speak well of Ferdinando, and although the Queen was absent in Austria or the island of Sicily when Ferdinando took vengeance on his dis- loyal subjects by the perpetration of cruelties that can only be described as horrible, yet these horrors have generally, though most unjustly, been attributed to Maria Carolina. In general, Ferdinando was good- natured and easy-going, but when his passions were aroused he displayed a violent, cruel and remorseless nature, and after the Queen's death he developed ferocious instincts and became a cruel, tyrannical ruler. ^ A most interesting and comprehensive account of Maria Carolina has been written by Mrs. Bearne under the title of A Sister to Marie Antoinette (Fisher Unwin). 28 CHAPTER 11. Marie Am^lie's Home at Naples — Her Childhood — Betrothed to Marie Antoinette's Son the Dauphin — His Death — Her Girl- hood — Her Brothers and Sisters — Lord Nelson at the Court of Naples — Arrival of French Army — Flight of Koyal Family from Naples. A FAMOUS educationist said : " Give me the first seven years of a child's life, that is enough to colour the whole ". Without giving some account of her father -and mother and her native land it would have been impossible to realise the upbringing that made Marie Am^lie what she afterwards became, which must be my apology to those readers who may have thought the preceding chapter tedious or superfluous. Her father and mother had eighteen children. Marie Am61ie Th6rese de Bourbon was the fourth daughter (the first child born to the Queen of Sicily after the death of her mother the Empress Marie Theresa).^ She was born at Caserta in 1782 when her parents were at the height of prosperity. Caserta was an enchanting place, acknowledged to be the most beautiful royal residence in Europe. No 1 Marie Amelie's sisters who lived to grow up became, one Em- press of Austria, another Grand-duchess of Tuscany, another Queen of Sardinia, and the youngest married the Prince of the Asturias, and had she lived would have become Queen of Spain. 29 THE LIFE OF MARIE AMELIE other palace could equal its vast extent, its spacious lofty halls and corridors, its marble-floored salons, cool and delightful in the burning midsummer heat. It was surrounded by green woods ; the gardens were beautifully laid out and ornamented with statues and embellished with cascades and fountains. In one part of the grounds Queen Maria Carolina had made what she called an English garden. The Palace of Caserta was built by Ferdinando's father, who also erected the Palace of Portici, the hospital, and made the roads to Bovino and Evoli, the aqueduct, and began the excavations of Pompeii and Herculaneum. The scenery around Caserta is ex- quisite, the view from St. Elmo matchless. The Neapolitan proverb, " see Naples and die," has been bettered by an English traveller, who says : " After living at Naples it is impossible not to wish to live that one may return to it ". In these lovely and splendid surroundings Marie Amelie passed her early years. At her birth she was so delicate that she had to be wrapped in cotton wool, but she gradually outgrew this delicacy of health, and she very early gave proofs of remarkable intelligence, when, at two years and a half old, she began to read. This precocity was a source of great interest to her grandfather. King Charles of Spain. The old priest who taught her the catechism was equally pleased and delighted with the ease with which she learned her lessons and comprehended his instructions in religion. He used to call her " Fata Mia ". She never saw her grandmother, the great Empress of Austria, for Maria 30 S3 E-l 'a 13 -a g <1 O s; < THE LIFE OF MARIE AMELIE Theresa had died before this grandchild's birth, her death being the signal for an outburst of praise and veneration throughout Europe. Frederick the Great said : " She was an honour to her sex and to the throne. I made war on her, but was never her enemy. I mourn her death with sincerity." The Queen of Naples endeavoured to carry out the tradition she had inherited from her celebrated mother and bestowed much time and thought on the education of her childen. Marie Amc^lie, immediately after her birth, was confided to the care of an excellent governess, as was customary with all royal children at that time ; and on the governess rested the chief responsibility for the care of the child in infancy, her subsequent education, and the formation of her manners and character. The choice made for Marie Amelie was a most fortunate one. Donna Vicenza Rizzi was the widow of Don Bernardo Ambrozio, a distinguished Nea- politan lawyer. Signora Ambrozio was a refined, high-minded woman, whose good example and wise counsels were most beneficial to the young princess, who respected and loved her all her life. Although it was necessary to put them in charge of governesses yet Maria Carolina desired to obtain a lasting influence over her daughters and their entire confidence, and in the midst of all the cares of State never allowed a day to pass without their spending an hour with her, when she made stringent inquiries as to their progress in their studies and administered very salutary advice. 31 THE LIFE OF MARIE AMELIE Her eldest daughter was the Queen's prime fa- vourite, and when she married her cousin, the Emperor of Austria, and went to live at Vienna, the third daughter, Christina (afterwards Queen of Sardinia), became her mother's favourite. She was sweet and gentle, but completely outshone in her studies by her younger sister, Marie Amelie. At that period of her life Marie Amelie seems to have been treated with some severity by her mother, who said it was necessary to counteract Marie Am^lie's tendency to be overbearing. The King, however, made a special favourite of his fourth daughter, and when she was old enough used to take her with him on the hunting excursions in which he passed most of his time. In this way Marie Amelie became a splendid horsewoman, and in spite of his failings she was extremely fond of her father all through life. Some of Ferdinando's diversions were far from kingly. He sometimes went to the market and sold fish. On these occasions he wore a white cap and apron, and used to hold up the fish to auction, in- dulging coarse jests in the dialect of the Lazzaroni, who acclaimed him with delight. Every year on the night of Shrove Tuesday the Lazzaroni had the right of free admittance to the pit of the splendid theatre, the San Carlo, at Naples. The King used to take his place in a box on the upper tier attended by servants carrying huge dishes of hot mac- aroni dressed with cheese and oil, of which he took handfuls and threw it among the crowds below who 32 THE LIFE OF MARIE AMELIE scrambled and fought to get it. This amused Ferdi- nando, who delighted in all kinds of buffoonery. He and the Queen honoured their subjects by attending parties at their houses, and the presence of the sove- reigns was not considered a restraint, and instead of causing formality added to the enjoyment of all. We hear of a ball given by the Maggiordomo at Portici, to which many English visitors were invited. Among these were a Mr. Spence and a Miss Snow, who was so fat that she was known as " Double Stout " ; this couple, by their furious dancing, enter- tained the King prodigiously ; he roared with laughter, bravoed, clapped his hands and encouraged them to jump about. Each of them was conscious how much the other was laughed at, and took care to tell it to all the company, without suspecting that their own figure or performance could be the subject of merri- ment. Mr. Spence's dancing made quite a conquest of the King, who had him to play tennis very fre- quently and became on most intimate terms with him. Though Ferdinando was profligate and idle and despotic when aroused, he was adored by the popu- lace. His ignorance was profound ; his one civilised taste was for music. He played and sang fairly well, and would spend hours most contentedly singing duets with the Queen and her ladies. In order to obtain influence over him the Queen in the early days of their married life used to take part in all his diversions, though many of them must have been most uncongenial to her. as 3 THE LIFE OF MARIE AMELIE For many years, and until the Queen's political mistakes had ended disastrously, Ferdinando's ad- miration for and deference to the Queen was un- bounded. Their mutual love for their children had drawn them together ; the Queen grew indifferent to his incessant amours, for the objects of his passing affec- tions were not women of a class likely to obtain influence over him or interfere with the Queen's plans. From all the letters extant that passed between her and her relations one gathers the impression that the Neapolitan royal family was an affectionate family ; members were on the best of terms with each other. They were surrounded by every luxury ; the expendi- ture in the King's household alone was 600,000 ducats yearly. The Queen's allowance was not large, and she had such royally generous instincts in her treat- ment of all around her that the 100,000 ducats which it was the custom for the King to present to the Queen on the birth of a son were a welcome addition to her privy purse. Her eldest son, the Prince Koyal, was her third child ; he died of small-pox at an early age, and the second son, Francesco, born in 1777, became heir to the throne ; his two younger brothers, Gennaro and Carlo, died of small-pox ; another brother, Leopold, born at a later date, lived to grow up. He received the title of Prince of Salerno, and was the chief support and comfort of his mother in later life. While King Ferdinand affected the society of the Lazzaroni, Maria Carolina cultivated the good graces 34 CO 52 O K X o C ^ S N^ THE LIFE OF MARIE AMELIE of the upper classes, with whom she was very popular ; not only the nobility and courtiers but the most learned and intellectual men in Naples paid court to her. The Queen of Sicily was the favourite sister of the unfortunate Marie Antoinette, and when the latter became Queen of France the two sisters de- cided on the betrothal of Marie Antoinette's eldest son, the Dauphin, to his little cousin of Naples, Marie Am6lie, who was suitable in age, being two years younger than the Dauphin. So from a very early age Marie Amelie was taught to think of herself as the future Queen of France. How this destiny was ful- filled this book will show. Her proposed bridegroom died when she was barely eight years old. The letters and memoirs of the time give most touching accounts of the short and melancholy life of this little prince, whose birth had for so many years been eagerly desired by his father and mother and the French nation. He was sadly deformed, and died of a wasting disease, gradually fading away. Like many children destined to an early death, he was sensible beyond his years, precocious in intelligence, grave and serious in demeanour, and of a charming nature. Many stories are told of his noble, touching sayings. His spirit seemed to live at the expense of his body. When so weak that he could not stand he was an insatiable de- vourer of all the books he could obtain. The Countess Lage de Volude, who went to see him at Meudon in company with Princess de Lamballe on 8th April, 1789, wrote : " We went after dinner to visit the little 35 THE LIFE OF MARIE AMELIE Dauphin. It was heartbreaking. His sufferings, his patience, his intelligence were most touching. When we arrived an attendant was reading to him. He had had a fancy to lie on the billiard table, so his mattress had been placed there. It struck us that he looked as if already on the bed-of-state on which princes lie after their death. Mdme. de Lamballe asked what was being read. He replied : ' A very interesting period of our history, madame ; there are many heroes in it.' " I allowed myself to ask if he read straight on or only picked out striking passages. ' I read straight on, I do not know enough to choose, and all interest me,' he replied. " He said to the Due d'Harcourt in a low voice : *I think this is the lady who likes my map of the world,' and a servant was ordered to turn it. I had been enchanted with the perfection of this immense machine when I saw it on New Year's Day, but now I could think of nothing but this dear and unhappy child who was dying before our eyes." One of the attendants recounted that before the Dauphin had been so dangerously ill a playfellow had broken a piece of china which the Queen valued. Afraid of being scolded, he ran away. The Dauphin was accused and did not defend himself, so he was punished by being deprived for three days of the pleasure of going to Trianon. But on hearing this the real culprit returned and confessed. His gover- nor expressed astonishment that the Prince had said nothing. He replied : '' Should I be the one to accuse anybody 1 " 36 THE LIFE OF MARIE AMELIE On the 4th of May, lying on a piled-up heap of cushions on a balcony of the palace, the heir to the throne of France witnessed the procession of the States-General, the assembling of which was the be- ginning of the disasters that gradually overwhelmed the royal family of France. He had only a month to live. Mme. de Mge wrote : " The poor child is so ill ! What he says is almost incredible. It breaks the Queen's heart to hear him. He shows the greatest love for her. The other day he begged her to dine in bis room. Alas ! she swallowed more tears than any- thing else ! " In spite of the unpopularity of the royal family and the political excitement which absorbed the city of Paris, general sympathy was felt for the sad state of the royal child. Even the Revolutionary Party seemed softened, at least temporarily. Inquiries from all quarters were incessant, anecdotes of his pathetic sayings and the courage with which the boy bore his sufferings were repeated everywhere. The great bell of Notre Dame summoned the faithful to forty hours' prayer^ on his behalf, but on the 4th of June, 1789, the royal child had ceased to suffer, and, as we know, was delivered from the evil to come, and escaped the even worse fate that befell his younger brother, the Child of the Temple. Louis XVI., on hearing that the Dauphin had breathed his last, shut himself up in his room, wish- ing to be alone with his grief ; but if the people felt 1 To appoint forty hours' prayer was the custom of the Arch- bishop of Paris at all critical times. 37 THE LIFE OF MARIE AMELIE sympathy, their representatives showed little tact in expressing it. Bailly, at the head of a deputation from the States-General, demanded in imperious terms that the King should himself receive from their hands an address of condolence. Louis felt this violation of the privacy of his days of mourning very deeply, and said : " Are there no fathers in the Assembly ? " In Naples little Marie Am^lie took the death of her cousin, whom she had been taught to think of as her future husband, greatly to heart. In old age she remembered it and said : " I wept bitterly for my little cousin, but it was my destiny to become Queen of France at last." Marie Antoinette had another son, born 1785, and the Queen of Sicily had been chosen his god- mother, and was represented at the baptismal cere- mony by Mme. Elizabeth, sister of Louis XVI., but he was younger than Marie Am^lie, and the tragic events soon to take place in France put any idea of arranging marriages out of the heads of both queens. They were on the eve of the French Revolution. Queen Maria Carolina followed with horror and con- sternation the course of events in France, and occupied herself incessantly with plans for rescuing her sister from the hands of the fiendish Terrorists. She en- deavoured to stir up her vacillating brother, the Emperor Leopold, to form a coalition of the other European nations against France ; but the unfortunate and ill-judged Louis XVI. signed the French Con- stitution, secured a semblance of liberty, and sent 38 THE LIFE OF MARIE AMELIE circulars to the Powers to stop the movements of the armies collected to deliver him. When the fearful news of the execution of Marie Antoinette reached Naples, the Queen was over- whelmed with grief and horror. She made the news known to her children in an impressive manner, sum- moning them all to the palace chapel, where the solemn prayers for the dead were recited, and they were awestruck as they saw their mother kneeling with bowed head before the altar making inter- cessions for her sister's soul. These solemn scenes left a profound impression on the mind of Princess Marie Am^lie. About this time she made her first communion, and that important event in the life of a young and fervid Catholic seems to have altered her tastes and disposition ; she cared less for amusements, more for study and above all for religion, showing the germs of that saintly and noble character so fully developed in after years. The King and Queen of Sicily refused to accept an ambassador from the French Convention and war with France seemed inevitable. Every possible pre- paration was made in Sicily, but the exposed position of Naples, with its palaces and public buildings and government offices right on the sea-shore, made it appear an easy task for a French jfleet to bombard it. In December, 1792, a French squadron appeared in the Bay of Naples — powerless to resist, the Sicilian Government agreed to disavow any intention of offer- ing insult to France in the person of her ambassador, for the French Republic had emissaries at Naples, 39 THE LIFE OF MARIE AMELIE who were spreading revolutionary doctrines, and they had a large following. The Sicilian Government was only temporising. As soon as possible an alliance was entered into with England in order to obtain command of the Medi- terranean and the protection of Naples against pirates as well as against the French fleet. Lord Nelson was sent to Naples, where he was received as a hero and tremendously feted by Court and people. When- ever the English sailors passed through the streets they were acclaimed by the people who crowded to see them. Lord Nelson was received at Court almost as if he had been a royal visitor, and sat on the King's right hand. He had after a while to go to Egypt, where he burned, sank or otherwise destroyed Napo- leon's fleet at Aboukir. He then returned to Naples and was in Sicilian waters on and off for five years. Whenever he was at Naples he was a constant visitor at the palace, and was a familiar figure throughout Marie Am^lie's early life. The celebrated Emma Hamilton was on intimate terms with the King and Queen of Naples. While she was occupying an equivocal position in the house- hold of the English ambassador. Sir William Hamil- ton, the Queen did not receive her, but as soon as their marriage was announced she did so, and Lady Hamilton's tact and discretion soon made her a great favourite at Court. At Naples Lady Hamilton's house was the resort of the best people of all nation- alities and of many English visitors of high rank and irreproachable reputation ; Lord Nelson's attentions 40 THE LIFE OF MARIE AMELIE to her as wife of the English Ambassador seemed natural and did not excite comment. The Queen used Emma Hamilton's inHuence for her own ends and liked her personally. The King of Naples also liked her and used to sing duets with her for hours at a time. Of his singing Emma said : " It was but bad, he sings like a king ". She might have been laughing and talking in the Queen's apartments all the afternoon, but at a public reception in the evening Emma would keep her dis- tance, and treated the Queen with punctilious respect as if she had never seen her in private. This pleased Maria Carolina mightily, and she would make a point of distinguishing Lady Hamilton. After the battle of Aboukir, the Queen wrote to her : " Hip ! hip ! my dear lady. I am wild with joy. What a pleasure it will be to greet our hero ! " The King was at dinner with the Queen and the Princes and Princesses when the news of the victory was brought to him. He started up and embraced his wife and daughters, exclaiming : " Oh, my chil- dren, you are now safe ! " Naples went wild with joy when, three weeks later, Nelson and the victorious English squadron arrived in the bay. The royal barge with the King, accompanied by a brilliant retinue and his musicians, went first ; then came the British Minister and Lady Hamilton rowed by liveried boatmen, followed by a long train of boats and barges going forth to meet the victorious admiral, whom the King styled "De- liverer" and "Preserver". 41 THE LIFE OF MARIE AMELIE At the banquet on board the Vanguard much notice was taken of a small bird that hopped about on the table between the plates. It had come on board the evening before the battle of Aboukir and was looked upon as bringing good luck. The King gave Nelson the estate of Bront6, near Mount Etna ; it is a dukedom, and the income was valued at £2,000 annually. He also gave him a sword set with dia- monds which had belonged to his father, saying Naples had been conquered with it and it ought to belong to Lord Nelson, who had saved the king- dom. Nelson was looked upon as a kind of patron saint by the royal children. Marie Am^lie's eldest brother, the Prince Royal, used to stand before his portrait and say : " Great Nelson, make me like you ". In 1780, when the Prince Royal was thirteen years old, the King and Queen, accompanied by all their children, went to Vienna for his betrothal to his cousin, the Archduchess Clementina, and for the marriage of Marie Am^lie's two eldest sisters, one to the heir to the Austrian Crown, afterwards the Emperor Francis 11. , and the other to his brother, the Grand-duke of Tuscany. After these ceremonies the Neapolitan royal family returned to Naples. To give an account of all the plots and counter- plots, and the political and military events which made the history of the Kingdom of the Two Sicilies during the reign of Marie Amelie's parents abound in tragic scenes, is not necessary, for she herself took no active part in them. 42 THE LIFE OF MARIE AMELIE But figuratively and actually it was life on the edge of a volcano. In 1783 a fearful earthquake devastated Sicily and Calabria. An English visitor writing to a friend said : "In the course of one month we might have been either bombarded by the French, smothered by a mountain, or swallowed up by an earthquake". In spite of rumours of the approach of the French army and the fact of dangerous conspiracies in its midst, the Court of Naples still continued the splendid fetes and varied amusements which made foreign travellers say that life on those en- chanting shores seemed a never-ending round of pleasure. Though too young to be emancipated from her studies, some share in these exciting scenes must have fallen to the lot of the young Princess Marie Amt^lie. She and her sisters would at all events be present at reviews of the troops that the Queen was straining every nerve to raise to repel Napoleon's army, at carnival processions, and would accompany her mother on the visits to the convents which were so much a part of the routine in the life of royal ladies at that time. All Neapolitan convents were under the supervision of the Queen, who visited them in turn yearly, and took a numerous suite to partake of the splendid entertainments given by the nuns. On one occasion the royal party was surprised to find a table covered with meats, hams, fowls, fish and other substantial dishes, although it was in the after- noon. However, they seated themselves, and the 43 THE LIFE OF MARIE AMELIE nuns stood behind to serve them. The Queen chose a piece of cold turkey, which on being cut up proved to be a deHcious lemon ice in the shape of a turkey ; all the other dishes were ices disguised as fish, flesh or fowl. Many of the convents were very rich. Ladies of rank would rather their daughters married, for it cost more to make them nuns. The ceremonies that took place when a young lady made her pro- fession were very costly — £1,000 hardly covered the expense — and besides there had to be a pension for the nun, and a sum in reserve in case she should arrive at holding office in the convent. The populace of Naples were always very turbulent, and it was necessary to keep a strong garrison there, and to take care that the inhabitants were supplied with food at a moderate rate, to keep them in good humour. Government spent large sums in purchas- ing grain and selling it under cost price to the poor. The remission of sentences on prisoners on the occasion of happy events at the palace, such as the birth of a royal child, helped to demoralise the people, for crimes were followed by severe and even barbarous punishments ; if the sentences were remitted, worse crimes generally followed. An endeavour was made to improve morals by marriage laws which were in- tended to " put an end to female artifice (!) elope- ments and unequal alliances". In spite of all efforts to suppress them Republican opinions were spreading, though for reading the works 44 THE LIFE OF MARIE AMELIE of Voltaire a reader was liable to be sent for three years to the galleys. On the surface, however, life at Naples seemed a splendid pageant. The King counted a hundred per- sons with the title of Prince, and a still greater number with that of Duke, among his subjects. They all possessed magnificent equipages drawn by six or eight horses, with richly liveried servants running in front and behind. Their palaces were immense and splen- did, the entertainments given in them were most luxurious ; the tables would be loaded with a variety of dishes, the fruit and wines of all countries, and there would be a servant in the host's livery standing behind the chair of each guest to serve him. An English visitor wrote : — "All ranks seem to live only for show and in idleness. Expense and prodigality are at their height. The rich are oppressed with debt and the lower orders spend their wages before receiving them. Every day there are fireworks, music, religious processions. At the parade of the Ottaboni the Court with King and Queen and Ministers were present in the Calle Toledo. The street was lined with a double row of guards behind ropes, the coaches paraded in the middle. Every window was full of spectators leaning upon silk or tapestry hangings. The foot people crowded so thick that the postilions by cracking their whips could with difficulty make room for the five cars of the Madelona, and the sledges of the hunters with horsemen and hounds attending them ; the parade was closed by a Bucentaur. The last that came was an 45 THE LIFE OF MARIE AMELIE English steam-boat manned by royal cadets. After these carriages had passed twice before their majesties, the street was cleared by the dragoons and then on the firing of a few petards, a dozen horses with fellows riding bareback came galloping down the street. The prize was a piece of tissue. This was but poor work ; but the next race of five barbs without riders was very amusing. Waiting till dark, the carriages re- turned in the same order very well illuminated. The Madelona's stopped opposite the King and played ofi" fireworks out of the front of each car. The illumina- tions of the Bucentaur were beautiful beyond expres- sion. I never saw a finer sight. From thence we went to a ball at Court, where an excellent hot supper was served, but each person had to eat on his knees and in the best manner he could. We were served with pies, hams, wines and fruit in the greatest profusion. In the ball-room the chairs were set so as to form a square in the middle of the room, and the company sat facing each other in a double row. The King played at Macao, and soon after midnight both he and the Queen retired, and shortly afterwards the assembly broke up, walking to their coaches by the light of charming illuminations, through gardens where foun- tains cooled the air." Naples was crowded with French refugees, driven out by the horrors of the Revolution. To all of them the Queen of Naples showed the utmost generosity, straining her resources to the utmost. To those who had personally known and enjoyed the favour of her beloved sister Marie Antoinette, she extended a very 46 as H H |Zi 13 THE LIFE OF MARIE AMELIE warm welcome, and they formed part of her intimate society. The young Princesses liked to practise talk- ing French with them, and were never tired of hearing all that could be told of their French relatives. Among the refugees who had known Queen Marie Antoinette was the celebrated Mme. Vig^e le Brun, who, while at Naples, painted an excellent portrait of the Queen as well as some other members of the Neapolitan royal family. The Queen paid her mag- nificently and presented her with a beautiful lacquer box set with diamonds. She also wished Mme. le Brun to remain permanently at Naples and offered her a charming residence on the sea-shore. However, the charming painter had been sum- moned to the Court of Kussia and could not make up her mind to stay at Naples. She says in her Memoirs : " Though the scenery is enchanting and the air balmy and delicious, I should not like to spend my life there. In my opinion Naples ought to be seen like a magic-lantern. Before one could feel comfortable there, one would have to get accustomed to the terrors inspired by the volcano, and to living in constant expectation of an earthquake. If these drawbacks did not exist, who would not wish to live in such a delicious country ? The Queen is a very highly cultivated woman and takes the greatest pains with the education of her daughters, but most Nea- politan ladies are surprisingly ignorant. They take no exercise and their only occupation is intrigue ; they are superstitious to the last degree. At noon all the world is asleep ; in the evening till eleven 47 THE LIFE OF MARIE AMELIE o'clock the populace crowd to the Largo Castello to saunter about, and then retire, leaving the scene clear for the people of quality, who take possession of it till one o'clock." The Corso on the sea-shore was the great scene of Neapolitan splendour and display. When there was no opera the ^lite of society passed their evenings on the shores of the bay, and on Sundays the fashion- able drive was along the Chiaja to Posilipo. On the fete day of the Madonna dei pie di Grotta the Chiaja was crowded by daybreak with a gay populace in bright holiday dress. The garrison troops lined the route. The nobility appeared in gala coaches. Grand dinners were given at all the houses on the line. At five o'clock the King passed in his state coach, with a retinue following him in twenty-two carriages. A picturesque scene that could not be matched in any other European capital. In 1797 life at Naples was full of excitement. Conversation by day and dreams at night had for their sole subject the meeting of the hostile fleets of France and England. Sicily was collecting arms and stores. Reviews of the troops were frequently held, and Maria Caro- lina with her Court stayed for some weeks at San Gennaro where the army was encamped. She used to ride through the lines in a blue habit with gold Jleur de Ij/s at the neck, and a general's hat with a white plume. Napoleon had invaded Italy, and though Nelson had destroyed the French fleet sent to bombard 48 THE LIFE OF MARIE AMELIE Naples, yet the French army under Champoinet soon appeared there. The NeapoHtan troops were de- feated on all sides, and the Revolutionary Party were waiting to deliver the city to the French. The popu- lace, maddened with terror and hatred of the foreign invasion, rose tumultuously, destroyed the houses of the revolutionaries and committed terrible atrocities. The populace were loyal to their King but savage and ungovernable, and in the tumults then taking place none knew who might be the next victim or what turn their fury might take. Besides this the Queen of Sicily had a great dread of falling into the hands of the French armies, the murderers of her sister and Louis XVI. Warned by their terrible fate she deter- mined to escape with her family before it was too late. She claimed the assistance of Nelson to trans- port them to Palermo, capital of the island of Sicily. The Sicilians were loyal and ready to fight to the death against the French. 49 CHAPTER III. Plight of the King and Queen to Sicily — Their Life there with their Family — Visit of Queen and her Daughters to Austria — Eeturn to Naples — Second Flight to Sicily — Arrival in the Island of Louis Philippe, Due d'Orleans, Future Husband of Marie Amelie. When the departure of the royal family had been decided on the Queen made use of Lady Hamilton, wife of the English ambassador, for the purpose of getting her boxes conveyed on board the ships, and wrote : " There will be many of them, for 'tis for ever we go ". It was necessary to carry this out secretly, for if it had been generally known that they were about to leave, the Lazzaroni would have endeavoured to prevent it, and they were a powerful body, num- bering 40,000, and could enforce their wishes. So the boxes containing clothing and necessaries, the cases containing furniture or treasure, were all sent to Lady Hamilton's house and from thence taken to the ships that were to transi)ort them to Sicily. There was an underground passage leading from the palace to the shore, and when all the arrange- ments were completed, and everything ready for their departure, the royal family traversed this passage and were met by Lord Nelson at the shore end at nine o'clock in the evening. 60 THE LIFE OF MARIE AMELIE It was on the 21st December, 1798, that the King and Queen and their family went on board Nelson's shij), the Vanguard, which was to be accompanied by two Neapolitan warships. Twenty vessels, merchant- men and transports, were loaded with treasure, and crowded with members of the Court and adherents of the King and Queen, and the long procession of ships set sail for Sicily. They encountered a terrible storm ; every one was dreadfully sea-sick, and Marie Am^lie's little brother, a child of seven, died of exhaustion. A violent blast struck the Vanguard, tearing her sails to pieces ; many of the ships of the convoy were scat- tered, but the Vanguard and its royal burden arrived at Palermo at five o'clock on a dark winter's morning. The royal party were ill, miserable and exhausted, but thankful to have arrived in safety. They went on shore, escorted by Nelson, and took up their abode at the royal palace. The Sicilians received them with every manifestation of joy and loyalty, and after re- covering from grief at the death of the little Prince, whose funeral was the first public ceremony that took place, the royal family settled down into their usual mode of life. They had only exchanged one beautiful capital for another. They were not in financial diffi- culties, having brought away means to carry on the government, provide for their followers, and make preparations for the defence of their new capital, besides treasures of the State and gold from the mint and banks, and as much of the valuable contents of their palaces as could be bestowed on board the ships. Though Maria Carolina has been much blamed for it, 51 THE LIFE OF MARIE AMELIE we think her conduct in this respect very wise, and contrasting favourably with that of most of the French royal and other refugees, who put off their departure till the last minute and then fled suddenly without resources, arriving in foreign countries in a destitute condition, and were obliged to weary the Courts of Europe by their begging incessantly for money and assistance. The bay and city of Palermo are by many people considered more beautiful than those of Naples. The regal elegance of its marble palaces, its fanciful buildings of Saracenic architecture, are like a fairy scene. Two great streets intersect each other in the centre of the city, where they form a square called Ottangolo. From the centre of this square the whole of these fine streets and the four great gates of the city which ter- minate them are seen, and produce a fine effect of sym- metry and beauty. The handsomest of these gates, the Porto Felice, opens on the Marina, a magnificent promenade with a row of fine houses on one side and on the other fine trees and a terrace for pedestrians, along which statues of the Sicilian kings were placed at intervals ; in the midst a wide carriage road. The Marina led to beautiful public gardens, " The Flora Keale," where a band played for the pleasure of pro- menaders. On account of the scorching heat in sum- mer it was necessary to turn night into day. The orchestral concert began when the clock struck mid- night, when the nobility left their carriages and walked up and down to enjoy the sea breezes. No lights were 52 THE LIFE OF MARIE AMELIE allowed, so unless there was a moon the promenaders could not recognise each other. In his well-known book of travels Mr. Brydon says : *' In Palermo the chief entertainments are conversaziones. Here people really converse, while in Italy they only meet to eat ices and play cards. Sicilians are better educated than Italians, and instead of the frivolities which afford topics of conversation in Italian society, the Sicilians talk of literature and his- tory as well as of politics, and I was surprised to find many young noblemen acquainted with Milton, Shake- speare, Bacon, and the best English authors. They were evidently better educated than their King, whose ignorance was remarkable. When some one men- tioned the execution of Charles I. Ferdinando said he refused to believe it had occurred, for he admired the English too much to believe that their nation could be guilty of such a crime. He was sure it was only a false report circulated by the French to justify the murder of Louis XVI. Many of the Neapolitan nobles were very ignorant. One asked Lady Hamilton if she went to Capri by sea or land. Another in his death-bed confession admitted having fought a duel : "I said Tasso was superior to Ariosto, and we fought three times ; but though I disputed so vehemently I have never read a word of either of those authors ". If Sicilian gentlemen were well educated it seems that Sicilian ladies were unfortunately deficient in good looks. Several travellers mention this. One says : "1 went to a soiree at the Prince of P 's 53 THE LIFE OF MARIE AMELIE house, where the principal belles of Palermo were assembled, a collection of frightful women. I never beheld such an ugly race as the Palermite ladies, they are perfect monsters ". The Sicilians were a remarkably loyal race. When the King instituted an Order to reward loyalty — the Order of St. Ferdinando — it was remarked that all the recipients were Neapolitans. A Sicilian noble- man said the King had done well to give it to the few Neapolitan noblemen who had been faithful. He would have had to give it to every Sicilian. Court functions went on as usual at Palermo, but the Queen was troubled about affairs of State and the difficulty of defending the island from the French, for all the Neapolitan warships as well as an immense quantity of gunpowder had been burned and destroyed to prevent their falling into the hands of the enemy. After arriving at Palermo the Queen wrote to Lady Hamilton : " My dear Lady, — It appears ages since I saw you. It will be a great treat to see you again, to thank you for all the help you gave us, and to assure you of my eternal gratitude. Night or day Lord Nelson or his officers can see me or the King. I wish to talk over our affairs with our brave deliverer. So many troubles have shaken me and I am much depressed." The Queen was most generous in her acknowledgment of Lady Hamilton's services and presented her with magnificent jewellery as well as large sums of money. The King had laid the blame of the necessity of their flight from Naples on the Queen's policy, and 54 THE LIFE OF MARIE AMELIE during the rough voyage to Palermo had said it was her fault that they were not sleeping comfortably in their beds ; but after arriving in the island Ferdinando did not trouble himself about anything, and was per- fectly happy so long as he could get good hunting, shooting and fishing, and this he found to perfection in Sicily. Francesco, the Prince Royal, likewise was of no comfort or assistance to the Queen. He was like his father, stupid and without cultivated tastes, and in spite of all the pains his mother had taken with his education, he cared for nothing but sport. His marriage with his cousin, the Archduchess Clem- entine of Austria took place when he was nineteen and his bride fifteen, in 1797 ; she was a charming girl and much beloved by Princess Marie Am^lie, who was just of the same age. The Princess Royal held her Court, but Princess Marie Am^lie, being un- married, had still to pursue her studies and was under the control of her governess, who encouraged her to take part in works of charity, to visit the poor and sick, and to make garments for them. There were also the visits to convents. Probably she and her sisters would have been taken to see some of the in- teresting historical sites in which Sicily abounds. There was Monte Pellegrino where Hannibal's father remained during five years of the Punic Wars ; the temples of Agrigentum amidst the orange and olive woods ; the Temple of Concord and that of Jupiter Olympus, the largest in the world. Near by the Convent of Recollects is situated, and from its ter- races a magnificent panorama meets the eye. Then 55 THE LIFE OF MARIE AMELIE near Syracuse, where Dionysius used to keep 400 ships of war in the bay and on land 100,000 soldiers, are the curious Latomise or subterranean prisons, and a large quarry called " the Ear of Dionysius," wrought in a circular form and used as a dungeon. The Ear is artificially cut and has many rings in the wall for fastening chains to. At the top it is narrowed and twisted in the shape of an S till it terminates in a groove which is conveyed to a small closet high up over the entrance, where the listener sat. Owing to breaches in the walls the hearing is now imperfect. The echo in the quarry is wonderful ; the tearing of a sheet of paper sounds like the cracking of a whip. Farther down are the Catacombs, thought more wonderful than those of Rome. In many of the mouths of the skeletons medals were found. The Fountain of Cyane, near which Egyptian papyrus grew. Then there was Etna, the wonderful size of which quite dwarfed the memory of Vesuvius. It is best approached from Catalagina, from whence a plain of thirty miles extends to Etna, Snow covers a quarter of this stupendous cone, then comes a dark brown region, lower down a number of white villages, then Catania, the finest city in Sicily, built on black lava vomited from two hills at the foot of Etna : out- side, the immense tree-trunk, called the Cente Cavilli, in which travellers are seated at a table to dine ; and other immense chestnut trees, some measuring seventy- eight feet round. Sicily is not, as some people think, a barren rocky country. There are cornfields and greensward, rich 56 THE LIFE OF MARIE AMELIE tracts of cultivation, olive woods and great forests of chestnut and oak trees of prodigious size and bulk. Writing to her favourite daughter, the Empress of Austria, in 1799, Maria Carolina says: ''As Queen- mother, woman I am unlucky. My children hide their grief in order not to sadden me, they merit a better fate. Mimi (Maria Christina) prays and does penance, hoping that God will take pity and change our circumstances. Am^lie is the prettiest and has infinite tact and an excellent heart. Your father is well ; whether from religious principle or resignation he is content. I admire him. Naples is like the Hott- entots to him. He does not see it and therefore does not think of it." Her daughter replied : *' Come to me, dearest mother ; you and my beloved brothers and sisters will be received with open arms. You can be your own mistress and live as you please. I cannot rest so long as you are in Sicily exposed to dangers. Think of me only as your devoted Theresa, who would give her life to make you happy. You can live at Vienna or in any other part of my husband's dominions that you prefer." At that time Maria Carolina would not accept her daughter's invitation. She said : " I would rather die than be dependent on others." She and her daughters embroidered banners for the Sicilian troops who took up arms against the French, and she still had hopes of returning one day to ^.Naples. The old French princesses, daughters of «7 THE LIFE OF MARIE AMELIE Louis XV., had taken refuge at Naples and were lodged at Caserta for three years. They, too, had taken flight, and the Queen wrote to her daughter : " We only lent them two old carriages and six bad horses, but they were grateful. If they get safe to Vienna treat them as their rank deserves." The young princesses spent their time pleasantly and happily enough during their two years' stay in Sicily, but the Queen was melancholy and depressed ; there was desperate fighting going on in the mainland, and the French had established a Republican Govern- ment at Naples, now called the Parthenopian Re- public. News was disquieting ; the Queen in June, 1800, resolved to go to Vienna to confer with her son-in-law, the Emperor, on political matters and to see her daughter Ludovica, Duchess of Tuscany, who was in great sorrow over the death of her son, and longed for her mother's presence. Maria Carolina was accompanied to Vienna by her four younger children, the Princesses Christine, Marie Am^lie and Antoinette, and Prince Leopold. Lord Nelson in his ship the Foudroijant took them to Livorno. They were accompanied by the English ambassador. Sir William and Lady Hamilton ; also by Miss Cornelia Knight, who has left a detailed account of all that occurred on this eventful journey. On landing at Livorno the first news they heard was of Napoleon's great victory over the Austrians at Marengo, and they had to pass a month at the Court of Tuscany before it was safe to continue the journey to Vienna. Tuscany was overrun by the French troops, and terrifying rumours 68 THE LIFE OF MARIE AMELIE were always in circulation. "When finally they set out^ the journey by land and sea was full of anxieties and dangers owing to the nearness of the French armies. Miss Knight speaks of the great attention paid to her, and the kindness of the princesses when she was ill during their travels. Lord Nelson escorted them to Ancona, where an Austrian frigate fitted up with silk hangings and carpets and eighty beds for the accommodation of the party had been sent to meet them, but there had been a mutiny on board, and they finally set ofif with a Russian squadron of three frigates and a brig which conveyed them across the Adriatic. The Queen and thirty -four of her suite had fever, but when after their tedious and perilous journey they finally arrived at Vienna, the Queen was received with all the honours due to her as daughter of the great Empress, Maria Theresa, and mother of the reigning Empress and aunt to the Emperor. The Austrian Prime Minister, Thugut, dreaded Maria Carolina's influence over her nephew and son-in-law, Francis I./ and saw with uneasiness the increasing intimacy and affection of the royal children of Naples and their Austrian cousins. Marie Am^lie, in her journal, speaks of her happiness and delight during this long stay in Austria. Being fond of music she appreciated the opportunities of studying it and enjoying musical performances, for Haydn was then at Vienna in the height of his fame. ^His father, Francis of Lorraine, though called Emperor did not reign, he was only the consort of the Empress. 59 THE LIFE OF MARIE AMELIE The simple family life, and outdoor amusements of the Imperial family, were varied by attendance at great ceremonies, such as the reception of the Arch- duke Charles as Knight of the Teutonic Order, ac- companied by all the pomp and religious solemnity of the days of chivalry. Also the opening of the Diet at Presburg, a magnificent spectacle to which the picturesque figures of the Hungarian nobles, their strange customs, and the extraordinary splendour of their dress lent an almost Oriental character. They also made a pilgrimage to Maria Zell in Styria where their grandfather the Emperor Francis had died. To get there they had to travel two days through grand scenery to this lonely spot among the mountains. The loveliness of the place and the imposing church so impressed Marie Am^lie that she wished she could come every year. Marie Am^lie was not pretty. She was tall and thin, with fair hair, small blue eyes and irregular teeth. But her head was well set on her shoulders and she had an air of distinction and a very pleasant expres- sion. One of the cousins, the Archduke Anton, fell in love with her and paid her devoted attention in public and private. He was destined for the priest- hood and to become Prince Bishop of Bamburg, one of the greatest ecclesiastical positions in Europe, but Maria Carolina told her daughter that if she recipro- cated his affection, the vows could be annulled by the Emperor's influence. Marie Am61ie, however, did not wish for the marriage. Still more distasteful was the next husband proposed for her, the eldest son of the 60 THE LIFE OF MARIE AMELIE King of Spain. The reports as to the personality of the Prince of the Asturias were unpleasant, and the weak, foolish King Charles V. was entirely governed by his wife, a woman of extremely vicious character, swayed by her disreputable favourite Manuel Godoy. The Spanish Court could not have been a desirable home for a well-brought-up princess ; but the alliance was too important to be rejected by the Queen of the Two Sicilies. Marie Am61ie escaped, as it was de- cided that her younger sister Antoinette was more suitable in age for the Prince of the Asturias. Marie Amelie was heart-broken at parting with this favourite sister who had been her intimate companion, and was full of forebodings as to her fate, which in a few years were justified by her untimely end. The French ambassador, Junot, spoke with great admiration of the young Princess of the Asturias, saying : " She was charming, the perfection of a princess, a most accomplished person ". She obtained unbounded in- fluence over her husband ; this excited the jealousy of the Queen-mother and her all-powerful favourite, Godoy, by whose orders she was poisoned. While the young princesses and their mother had been enjoying a peaceful time at Vienna, terrible events had convulsed the Kingdom of the Two Sicilies. The Republican Government at Naples was by no means secure, though they did their best to spread Republican sentiments, and used to employ popular orators for this purpose. One of them, known as Michaelo el Pazzo, had been made a colonel by the Republic and set to harangue the mob. When asked 61 THE LIFE OF MARIE AMELIE what a citizen was he replied : " I do not know, but it must be a good name, as the heads of the State have adopted it for themselves. By calling every one Citizen, the great lords are no longer Excellencies and we are no longer Lazzaroni ; that name makes all men equal." When asked, " What does equality mean ? " he replied : " That I may be either a Lazzaro or a Colonel. The great lords were Colonels before they were born, I am one by Equality. Men were once born great, now they become so." M. David, the Consul at Naples, wrote to the French Government : " The populace are fanatically devoted to Ferdinando and detest the French. If they saw a chance they would not leave a Frenchman alive. If the English come and bombard Naples and join forces with the Lazzaroni we shall be in the greatest danger." The Royalist jmrty were not idle ; the inhabitants of the Abruzzi took up arms under the brigand who became celebrated under the name of Fra Diavolo, for neither party was particular as to the tools they used to effect their purpose. Knowing the power of religious sentiment on his people, the King invested Cardinal Ruffo, a most remarkable man, with command of the troops raised in Calabria, and the title of Vicar- General of the Kingdom. He gave absolution to the troops for all crimes committed, and knew how to turn brigands into intrepid soldiers. Every morning he performed Mass in camp and then rode at the head of the troops dressed in purple, sword in hand. The French troops had to retire before him, he entered Naples victorious, and thus ended the Parthenopian Republic. 62 THE LIFE OF MARIE AMELIE After the occupation of Naples by Cardinal Ruffo, Ferdinando, escorted by Nelson and the English fleet, returned thither and resumed his sovereignty in June, 1709. During the war and afterwards, be- fore his authority was re-established, terrible atrocities were committed, and in taking vengeance on disloyal people scones so horrible were enacted that they were a disgrace to humanity. All this did not come to the knowledge of Marie Am^lie till many years later. It was not till 1802 that Queen Maria Carolina and her daughters, with their brother Leopold, Prince of Salerno, left Vienna and rejoined King Ferdinando at Naples. They re-entered in triumph and were received by Lord Nelson and Sir William and Lady Hamilton. The Queen threw herself into Lady Hamilton's arms and embraced her and encircled her neck with a string of diamonds, from which was suspended a miniature of herself, around which were the words " eternal gratitude ". During their stay in Vienna, Marie Am61ie had seen much of her niece, Marie Louise, then a child of eleven, who was destined to be Empress where Marie Am^lie afterwards became Queen, i.e., in France, and both were to reign under the tricolour flag which they had been taught in youth to detest. During the absence of his mother and sisters in Vienna the Prince Royal had lost not only his little son, the heir to the throne, but also his wife Clemen- tina, daughter of the Empress of Austria. She was 63 THE LIFE OF MAKIE AMELIE survived by her little daughter, named Maria Carolina after her grandmother, who in after years, as Duchesse de Berry, v^^as a familiar figure in the daily life of Marie Am61ie in France, where she played a conspicuous part. The heir to the throne having died, it was neces- sary for the Prince Royal to remarry. The Infanta Isabel of Spain was chosen to be his wife, and the Spanish warship that brought her to Naples took back the Princess Antoinette to Spain, she having been married to the Prince of the Asturias in Naples previously by proxy. The Sicilian royal family were much disappointed with the bride sent to the Prince Royal ; she was short, stout, plain, had very little education, and was of a lethargic temperament. Even the King felt his new daughter-in-law was not up to the mark, and contrasted her deficiencies with the attainments and manners of his accomplished daughters. Princess Marie Am^lie was desired to endeavour to polish and improve her young sister-in-law, but found it quite a hopeless task, as, though the Infanta Isabel was only fourteen, she had a great idea of her own importance as a married woman, wife of the heir to the throne, and declined to take either advice or instruction from her unmarried sister-in-law. However, she suited her hus- band very well, and they were quite happy together, passing their time in riding, hunting and looking after the Prince Royal's farm. Although many sad and terrible events were taking place in Naples, conspiracies, murders, trial and exe- cution of conspirators, many of whom were notable 64 THE LIFE OF MARIE AMELIE and distinguished persons, and the power of Napoleon was a perpetual menace, yet the Court life was out- wardly undisturbed, and the royal family occupied themselves with amusements of an intellectual order. The musicians, Cimaroso and Paisello, were in the height of their fame as composers ; the excavations at Pompeii and Herculaneum were a great interest, many beautiful works of art and antiquities were unearthed, and the Princesses Christine and Marie Am^lie were often there listening to the explanations of learned men. Every week the Queen gave informal dances for young people which her sons and daughters greatly enjoyed. One day in July the heat had been unusually op- pressive, the sky became overcast, a tremendous gale arose, and at night a terrible earthquake accompanied by a rumbling noise shook the city. Every one rushed out of their beds and houses into the open air. The princesses spent the night in a carriage outside the palace. At daybreak it was seen that Vesuvius was deprived of its summit, which had been swallowed up in the volcano. Darkness lasted for three days, and the air was thick with showers of ashes. The ground was convulsed for 600 miles around, fifty-nine towns were destroyed, thousands of people lost their lives. The destruction in Naples itself was not so great as in the surrounding country. It was not surprising that Marie Amelie retained all through life a great dread of earthquakes and thunderstorms. Not long before, her apartment at Portici had been struck by lightning and her embroidery frame destroyed. 65 5 THE LIFE OF MARIE AMELIE In 1806 Napoleon, wanting a kingdom for his brother Joseph, decided to annex Naples, and the Bourbons had again to fly to Sicily. This time they felt it would be never to return, and in her Journal Marie Am61ie relates how they went for the last time to the palace chapel for the service of benediction. She says : " After the service mamma addressed the Court in touching words of farewell ; nothing but tears and sobs were heard. I felt my heart break- mg. In a letter to her daughter, the Empress of Austria, Maria Carolina relates how exasperated she felt at the apathy of Isabel, the Princess Royal, who while the preparations for embarkation were going on and every one else was in the deepest grief, seemed to feel noth- ing. '* She is just like a log, understanding and feel- ing nothing, as unconcerned as if nothing was the matter." The emergency seemed to have aroused the Prince Royal ; he and his brother Leopold, full of enthu- siasm, went off to join the Sicilian army in Calabria, when, after a heart-rending farewell, the Queen and her daughters set sail for Sicily, where the King had already gone.^ Their former arrival in Sicily had been of a different character ; they were escorted by a powerful ally, and well provided with money and with everything neces- ^ His last words on leaving the palace, where he had reigned for forty-seven years, were : " Do not forget to bring my supper on board and to keep it hot ". This in the presence of a crowd of courtiers who had assembled to take leave of him. 66 THE LIFE OF MARIE AMELIE sary to transform an old palace into a luxnrious abode. On this occasion some of the ships bearing their fur- niture and stores were lost ; they were very short of money and were obliged to help their unfortunate retinue who had lost everything in the wrecked ships, and before long they were obliged to dismiss their servants because they had no money to pay them. So diminished was the royal household that, when the two children of the Prince Royal were taken out walking, the Princess Marie Am^lie and her sister had to stay at home, or there would have been no one to look after the palace apartments. The Queen was broken in health and spirit by a succession of mis- fortunes ; she seldom went out. The princesses, who had never before known anything but splendour and luxury in their surroundings, were now to undergo the discipline of poverty and privation. They were scrupulous in attending all church services ; they visited convents and endeavoured to console their mother. England was resolved that Napoleon should not get Sicily, though they had recognised Joseph Bonaparte as King of Naples, and when he was trans- ferred to Spain he was succeeded by Murat, the hus- band of Caroline Bonaparte.^ The English Government allowed King Ferdinando and Queen Maria Carolina £300,000 per annum for the upkeep of their Court and Government ; but Maria Carolina was never one who could stay her hand, and ^ After the fall of Napoleon and her husband's death Caroline Murat came to Paris and Louis Philippe granted her a pension. She always professed great admiration for Marie Amelie. 67 THE LIFE OF MAKIE AMELIE there were an immense number of loyalist refugees from Naples to be supported, so that the royal family were always in want of money. The English general said : " There is no order or method in distributing the finances. If Mount Etna were made of gold the royal family would still be poor." The war in Calabria being over, the Prince Royal and his brother returned to Sicily. The former with his father established himself in a country house and occupied themselves with farming, selling butter and eggs to all comers. Carlo Felice, Duke of Genoa, brother of the King of Sardinia, had long been attached to the Princess Christine, but in the days of prosperity the Queen of Sicily had not thought him a good enough match for her daughter. But when he now renewed his offer it was gladly accepted ; the marriage was cele- brated at Palermo, and after some stay in Sicily the Duke and Duchess of Genoa went in 1807 to live at the Sardinian Court. The Duke was heir-presump- tive to the Crown. Princess Marie Am61ie was now left alone with her mother, except for the companionship of her second brother, Leopold, Prince of Salerno, a high- minded, accomplished man, with whom she was on the best of terms. Napoleon had proposed a marriage between Marie Am^lie and his stepson, Eugene Beauharnais, Vice- roy of Italy, but this proposal was indignantly re- jected. The Queen's eyesight had failed, and Marie Amdhe 68 THE LIFE OF MARIE AMELIE spent much time in reading to and writing for her. The King only visited them occasionally. In her journal Princess Amc^lie says that the Queen showed her so much tenderness and affection that these months during which they were thrown on one another for companionship, and which they spent at the Queen's country house at Tamastra, were amongst her dearest recollections. The year 1808 was rendered memorable to Marie Am61ie by the arrival in the island of he who was destined to become her husband, Louis Philippe, Duo d'Orl(^ans. The Queen had the greatest horror of meeting him, being as he was the son of Egaliti^, the bitter enemy of her sister Marie Antoinette, and whose vote for the death of his cousin and King Louis XVI. has made his memory for ever execrable. He had met his reward on the scaffold, and his son Louis Philippe — though he had when a boy kept the door of the Jacobin Club, and witnessed with his governess, the celebrated Mme de Genlis, the storm- ing of the Bastille, and had fought with distinguished gallantry in the Republican army under Dumouriez — had in long years of poverty and exile learned to see what the extreme principles instilled into his mind in youth led to, and to abjure them. He had always looked on his father's conduct with horror and wished to blot out the remembrance of it, and to cast off the reproach attached to his name by establishing re- lations with some of the royal families of Europe. None could serve his purpose better than the Sicilian Bourbons, the bitterest enemies of the Revolution, by 69 THE LIFE OF MARIE AMELIE descent and tradition the perfect embodiment of the monarchical principle in Europe, and closely related to the sovereigns of Spain and Austria. He wrote an account of his first meeting with the Neapolitan royal family : " The Queen awaited me on the top of the steps at the entrance of her residence at Tamastro ; when I presented myself she took my hand and led me to her room ; there, standing in the recess of a window, she held my head between her hands and gazed at me for some time without speaking. At last she said : "I ought to detest you and yet I feel a liking for you ". She then sent for the princesses. Princess Marie Am^lie records this meeting, in her journal, as follows ; " Mamma sent for Isabel and me and presented the Due d'Orl^ans to us. He is of middle height, inclined to be stout ; he is neither handsome nor ugly. He has the features of the House of Bourbon and is very polite and well edu- cated." There is an entry in Marie Am^lie's journal on the last day of the year, 1808, in which she wrote : " This year I have made an acquaintance which will prob- ably influence my whole life, and has given rise to new sentiments and ideas in my mind and heart. Clearly seeing the hand of God in the unexpected arrival of the Due d'Orl^ans in this island, and in my parent's feelings towards him, I had thought we were destined to make the happiness of each other's lives. But I desire nothing that is against the will of God, or that will not be for His glory and the welfare of our souls." 70 THE LIFE OF MARIE AMELIE In after years, when King of the French, the Due d' Orleans told Victor Hugo that he had never been really in love but once in his life and that was with his "Governor," Madame de Genlis, though he said: " She educated us ferociously ". But he genu- inely admired and liked Marie Am^lie, who had charming manners, an air of great distinction, and was a most accomplished young lady, and he soon found means to win her affections ; his want of for- tune prevented marriage for the present, but they looked upon themselves as engaged. Marie Am^lie's brother was sent to Spain to act as regent on the death of the late king, and the Due d' Orleans was to accompany him. Marie Am^lie went to see her brother off and the Due d' Orleans escorted her to the place of embarkation. She said how glad she was that he was going with her brother. The Due d'Or- leans replied : " I will take care of him for your sake. Ah ! if you only knew how dear you are to me ! Do not forget me ! " " You may rely on me," replied Marie Am^lie. " I never change. My affec- tion once given is given for ever." When she left the ship and got into the launch that was to take her to shore, having taken her seat, she cried : "Adieu, mon cousin". He replied: "Adieu, ma princesse ". Marie Am61ie at this time was twenty-six years old and the Due d'Orl^ans thirty-five. This was not the first connection between the House of Orleans and the Kingdom of Sicily. An ancestress of Louis 71 THE LIFE OF MARIE AMELIE Philippe, Anne d'0rl6ans, daughter of Louis XIV. 's brother Philippe Due d'Orl^ans and Henrietta Stuart, married Victor Amadeus of Savoy, first King of Sicily, and they were crowned in the cathedral at Palermo with great pomp and magnificence. CHAPTER IV. Notes on the Life of Louis Philippe, Due d'0rl6ans and his Family — His Political Opinions — His Home, Education, Ad- ventures — Hjs Father's Fate — The French Revolution. Louis Philippe d'0rl6ans and Marie Am6lie were related, both were descendants in the same degree of Louis XIII., King of France. Louis XIII. Louis XIV. Philippe Due d'Orl^ans Dauphin The Eegent d'0rl6ans Philip V. of Spain Louis d'0rl6ans Chas. III. of Spain and Naples Louis Philippe d' Orleans Ferdinando Louis Philippe Joseph :figalit6 Marie Amelie Louis Philippe, King of the French Marie Am61ie's descent from Louis XIV. was in the male line, Louis Philippe's both male and female, for his ancestor the regent married Mile, de Blois, daughter of Louis XIV., and his own mother was granddaughter of the Comte de Toulouse, youngest son of Louis XIV. Louis Philippe was born in Paris, 1773. He was the eldest son of that Duke of Orleans generally known as Philippe Egalit^, though he was reluctant to assume this surname, which was forced on him when he was no longer the leader of the popular 73 THE LIFE OF MARIE AMELIE party but the discredited tool of the Terrorists.^ Philippe Egalit^'s wife was the only child and heiress of the Due de Penthievre who had inherited the great wealth of his uncle the Due du Maine, as well as that of his father the Due de Toulouse, youngest son of Louis XIV. and Madame de Montespan. Mile, de Penthievre was good, charitable and pious, ardently attached to the old regime : she fell desper- ately in love with her future husband, then Due de Chartres, at their first meeting, and declared she would never marry any one else. Her father gave his con- sent reluctantly, for the Due de Chartres was noted for his vicious disposition and dissipated habits, and it would have been difficult to find, as far as tastes and dispositions went, a husband less likely to make a young, modest girl happy. She was the greatest heiress in France, so the Due de Chartres was glad to marry her. He had good abilities, was tall and had an air of great distinction, but the vicious excesses of his life at an early age left their mark on his appear- ance. He was bald, his complexion became copper colour, his face was marred with pimples. He had made frequent visits to England and was a friend of ^He had sent his daughter to England for safety. She re- mained there a long time. When he wished her to return to France he was obliged to go to the Hotel de Ville and solicit from Manuel, Procurator of the Syndic, permission for her to re-enter the country. Manuel refused to grant permission unless the Duke of Orl6ans would assume a new name, and relinquish his title. Pointing to statues of Liberty and Equahty which adorned the hall, Manuel proposed to the Duke to take the latter as his new name. The Duke agreed, but with repugnance. 74 THE LIFE OF MARIE AMELIE the regent, afterwards George IV. and admired the English Constitution. It is necessary to give somewhat lengthy details as to the birth of Louis Philippe, because his legiti- macy has been challenged by Maria Stella, Lady Newborough,^ who maintained that sJie was the child of the Due and Duchesse de Chartres and that Louis Philippe was the son of Lorenzo Chiappini, a village constable of Modigliana in Tuscany ; that in 1773 the Due and Duchesse de Chartres were travelling in Italy under the name of Comte and Comtesse de Joinville, that the Comtesse gave birth to a daughter at Modigliana in April, 1773, and that this daughter was exchanged for a son born the same day to the wife of Chiappini ; that the reason for this substitution was that the Duchesse de Chartres was very delicate and that if she pre-deceased her husband without leaving a son a large proportion of her immense wealth would revert to her family. It is not likely that a high-minded woman like the Duchesse de Chartres would have agreed to such a substitution, and it will be shown - that she and her husband were not in Italy at the time of the birth of the girl brought up by Chiappini. It is, however, cer- tain that this girl was the daughter of travellers calling themselves Comte and Comtesse de Joinville and was exchanged by them for Chiappini's boy. It has since 1 See The Mystery of Maria Stella, Lady Newborough, by Sir Ealph Payne Gallwey. Published London, 1907. 2 See Les Enigmes de I'Histoire : Philippe J^galite et Chiappini, par M. Maurice Vitrac, de la Biblioth^que Nationale. Paris, 1907. 75 THE lifp: of marie amelie been proved ^ that these people were a Comte and Comtesse Battaglini, and that the Count was arrested on account of this substitution. Chiappini received a large sum of money with the girl and had her well educated. She went on the stage, Lord Newborough saw and admired her, and married her at Florence in February, 1786. When on the point of death her supposed father, Chiappini, told her of the substitution, and she ad- vertised for the Comte de Joinville. Apparently the only reason for thinking that she was the child of the Due and Duchesse de Chartres '^ was that Joinville is an estate belonging to the Dues d'Orleans, and there are no other holders of such a title. It was also supposed that she bore a very strong resemblance to the d'Or- leans family, and her supporters contended that Louis Philippe bore no resemblance to the Bourbons, and that he was vulgar in appearance and uncouth in manners ! Marie Amcjlie, when she first saw him, M^as struck by the Bourbon features, and at a later date Cuvillier Fleury said : " Were King Louis Phil- ippe to put on the costume of that reign he would be the living image of his ancestor Louis XIV." The sons of Louis Philippe were remarkably hand- some, distinguished-looking men, the Due de Nc^mours being always said to bear a striking resemblance to Henri IV. As to manners, Louis XVIII. who was no ^ See Les Enigmes de I'Histoire : Philippe Egalit^et Chiappini, par M. Maurice Vitrac, de la Biblioth6que Nationale. Paris, 1907. 2 His father the old Due d'Orleans was still alive, so his title was then Chartres. 76 THE LIFE OF MARIE AMELIE mean judge, and who detested Louis Philippe, said after their first interview when the Revohition was over: "The Due d'Orlc^ans both in manners and ap pearance is far superior to the princes of the elder branch of the House of Bourbon, my nephews the Dues d'Angouleme and Berry." In 1824 Lady Newborough appealed to the Court of the Bishop of Faenza, in whose diocese her baptism took place, for an amending of her baptismal certifi- cate. The Court found as follows : " It is plainly proved that Comte Louis de Joinville exchanged his daughter for the son of Lorenzo Chiappini, and that Demoiselle de Joinville was baptised under the name of Maria Stella, with the false statement that she was the daughter of L. Chiappini and wife." The copy of the paper authorising the alteration of the baptismal certificate was signed by the Vicar- General. Stella, Lady Newborough, made a request to the Tribunal of the Seine that this act of birth might be considered valid in France, which was re- fused, as it did not prove the descent or domicile of the so-called Comte and Comtesse de Joinville. When Lady Newborough advertised for the Comte de Joinville, Louis Philippe sent his uncle the Abb6 St. Fare to ask what she wanted, and on hearing her story he submitted the matter to the great lawyer Dupin, who ridiculed her claims, for it was known that the Due and Duchesse de Chartres were not in Italy in April, 1773, the date of the birth of Maria Stella. Records of public events in newspapers of that period prove that Egalit6 was in Paris at that time. 77 THE LIFE OF MAKIE AMELIE And it is related that when about that time he asked permission to go to Toulon the King refused, saying the Duo de Chartres ought to stay with his wife, who was in an interesting condition, and the law of France would not allow her, a princess of the blood, to leave the country while in that condition, so she could not have been at Modigliana in April, 1773. It would have been very difficult to substitute a changeling born in April for an infant born in October (which was the date of the birth of Louis Philippe) ; when many witnesses were in the room, as was customary at the birth of princes of the blood, and the new- born infant would be passed round for inspection by ministers, officials and members of the family. Would they all allow themselves to be duped, and shut their eyes and speak no word ? Maria Stella published her Memoirs, which were, however, confiscated by the police. She was under surveillance, but never molested, though she used to place transparent sketches of herself and the d'Orl^ans family in the windows of her house in Paris and illu- minate them at night that passers-by might compare the likeness. The caricaturists got hold of the story and circulated many offensive pictures of King Chiap- pini. His opponents used the story as a stick to beat the d'0rl6anists with, though, had the story been true and had Louis Philippe been illegitimate, it would not have affected his position as King of the French, elected by the will of the people, although not became he was a Bourbon. We now give a copy of the register of the birth of 78 THE LIFE OF MARIE AMELIE Louis Philippe, extracted from the National Archives, 1773:—^ " In this year one thousand seven hundred and seventy-three, Wednesday, 6th October, the very high powerful and excellent Prince, son of Monseigneur le Due de Chartres, Prince of the Blood, and of the very high powerful and excellent Princess, Mme. la Duchesse de Chartres, Princess of the Blood, born this morning at a quarter to four o'clock, has been privately baptised at the Palais Royal (by express permission of the Archbishop of Paris, dated last 7th September), by M. Andr6 Gautier, Doctor of the Sor- bonne and Almoner to M. the Due de Chartres, in our presence (Cur6 de St. Eustache) and in the pres- ence of the very high and excellent Prince, Monseig- neur the Due de Penthievre, and of M. Louis Comte de Shouberg, Chamberlain of Monsiegneur the Due d'Orleans, and of M. le Comte de Hanolstein. " Signed — L. P. J. d'Orleans. *' L. J. M. DE Bourbon. " L. Comte de Shouberg. " P. A. Comte de Hanolstein. " Gautier de Pompart CuRf." ^ All the assertions connected with the proofs of the birth of Louis Philippe are founded on irreproachable testimony — on docu- ments in the National Archives from the series containing the papers of the d'Orleans, Bourbon and Penthievre famihes. Some are at the Bibhoth^que Mazarin, others at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, others at the Bibliotheque de I'Arsenal — where the papers of the police are preserved — and at the Bibliotheque Nationale. Volumes containing Archives of Bastille and the Gazette of France of that period have been consulted, and the results published under the direction of M. Vitrac, of the Bibhotheque Nationale. 79 THE LIFE OF MAKIE AMELIE The above is taken from the Register of Royal Baptisms at Versailles, and the extract signed by the Curator of Archives. As to the witnesses of the birth, when the first signs of the coming accouchement of the Duchesse de Chartres were perceived, notice was sent to the family and M. le Prince de Conde and the Due de Bourbon soon joined the Dues de Penthievre and de Chartres and were present at the birth ; a few minutes after the birth the child's grandfather, the Due d'Orl^ans, arrived in haste from the country, the Duchesse de Bourbon from Chantilly, the Prince de Conti from ITsle Adam ; and in their presence the infant was baptised. In the afternoon the King and Princes sent their congratulations by special messengers. Three notaries prepared the Act of Birth of this prince of the blood, and it was sent to the King, who signed it in the presence of the dukes and peers. There were great rejoicings on the d'Orl^ans es- tates, and when the young heir, who was called the Due de Valois, was seen, carried by his nurse, in the gardens of the Palais Royal, he was surrounded by people who wished to have a look at him. The Due de Chartres, his father, gave orders that at certain hours any one after signing their name in the visitors' book might go and see the child in his nursery. Great numbers availed themselves of the permission, and this made the d'Orl^ans family feel that they were, as ever, the most popular of royal princes. The Due de Penthievre presented his daughter bO THE LIFE OF MARIE AMELIE with a gift of jewellery, royal in magnificence. When she was sufficiently recovered she, with her husband, her father and other relatives and all the Palais Koyal circle of friends were present at a Te Deum in honour of the birth of her son, sung at the Church of St. Eustache. The Duchesse de Chartres had not recovered her strength sufficiently to enable her to be present at the marriage festivities of the Comte d'Artois, which began on 14th November, and it was not till the 12th December, 1773, that she made her first appearance at Court after the birth of her son, and received the congratulations of the King and Queen. Louis Philippe was not baptised till 1788, when Louis XVI. and Marie Antoinette were godparents, and all the royal family were present. I think the above particulars dispose of the pre- tensions of Maria Stella, Lady Newborough, which, had they been substantiated, would have disqualified the sons and descendants of Louis Philij^pe from in- heriting the d'Orl^ans estates. The Due and Duchesse de Chartres had three sons and twin daughters, of whom only one. Princess Adelaide, lived to grow up. No account of the career of Louis Philippe ^ could be adequate without some notice of the remarkable woman to whom his educa- tion and that of his sister and brothers was entrusted, and who exercised so marked an influence over the ^ Louis XVIII. always called Louis Philippe the chef d'czuvre of Mme. de Genlis, and said : " He was very manly, but owed it to a woman ", 81 6 THE LIFE OF MARIE AMELIE characters of her pupils, and also, it may be said, over the fortunes of the d'OrMans family. Felicity, daughter of the Marquis de St. Aubin, was born in 1746, of a poor though noble family of the Loire. The nobility of her birth has been sometimes disputed, but as the genealogical proofs of her noble descent had to be carefully examined before she could be admitted as canoness of the Noble Chapter of Alix near Lyons, and she became a member of that order when six years old, the question of her birth is satisfactorily settled. When they grew up the canonesses were free to take vows or not. If they did they obtained a good pension and one of the little houses, each with its garden, grouped around the great Church and Abbaye. If they did not take vows they only received the title of countess and the decoration of the order. This was the case with Felicity de St. Aubin, who received the title of Comtesse de Lancy. When the Comtesse de Lancy was twelve years old her parents moved to Paris. She displayed unusual abilities, and great pains was taken with her education ; her musical and dramatic talents made a sensation, her playing of the harp being specially admired. Though without fortune she was a remarkably fascinating young lady, and there were several suitors for her hand before she was sixteen. She finally made a runaway marriage with the Comte de Genlis, a naval officer, brother of the Marquis de Genlis. Though belonging to an ancient and wealthy family, the Comte de Genlis, being a younger son, could not afford to marry a 82 THE LIFE OF MARIE AMELIE penniless girl, and to escape the opposition of the families to the match the young people took the law into their own hands. After the marriage Felicity soon fascinated her husband's relations, and the head of the family, the wealthy Marquise de Puisieux, pre- sented her at Versailles, after the birth of her first child. The young Comtesse de Genlis was much admired and sought after, and finally through the influence of her aunt, Madame de Montesson, who had been privately married to the Due d'Orl^ans,i she was appointed lady-in-waiting to the Duchesse de Chartres, wife of the eldest son of the Due d'Orl^ans, first prince of the blood. Madame de Genlis was exceedingly attractive, pretty and accomplished, and so amusing that it was impossible to be dull in her company. She soon obtained unbounded influence over both the Due and Duchesse de Chartres, and in due course was appointed first governess to their twin daughters, and afterwards "governor" of their three sons. Probably there was no one in France at that day better able to educate children born to a high position than Mme. de Genlis. She was wide-minded and really fond of study and learning, and all her life had quite a mania for teaching, which showed itself when she was a child in her gathering together the village children round her, and rehearsing to them the instruction she herself had received from her governess. Through all the vicissitudes of her life, and even when she was ^ She was his second wife and the marriage was morganatic. 83 THE LIFE OF MARIE AMELIE quite an old woman, she always had some young girl living with her whom she was educating. The Due de Chartres spent much time in talking with Mme. de Genlis, and used to discuss all family matters with her. One day he complained that his sons spoke with the accent of Parisian shop boys and had manners to match ; they could no longer be left to the care of servants, a tutor must be found. Mme. de Genlis proposed first one and then another, but none found favour in the eyes of the Duke. At last she said : '* How should / do ? " The Duke was delighted and Mme. de Genlis was gazetted as "Governor of the sons of the Due de Chartres". Mme. de Genlis gives an amusing account of her first relations with Louis Philippe. She says : ^ "At eight years old M. le Due de Valois was idle and inattentive to an unheard of degree. On the first occasion of his coming to me for instruc- tion I began to read aloud a tale from French history and I was extremely surprised to see him lie down on the sofa and put his feet on the table at which we were sitting. Nor did he listen to my reading, but yawned and stretched himself. In order that we might understand one another I at once put him in the corner. I had to cure him of silly habits and the use of vulgar expressions, but however much I scolded him he bore no ill-will. From the first I was struck by the good sense that seemed natural to him, and by his astonishing memory. He became passion- ately attached to me." ^ Memoires de Mme. de Genlis. 84 THE LIFE OF MARIE AMELIE In after years Mme. de Genlis said of him : " He learned everything, remembered everything and formed his own opinions on it. There was hardly any department of knowledge or art in which he was not at home." This he owed to Mme. de Genlis, for he remained under her supervision till he attained the age of seventeen. Taking her duties seriously, Mme. de Genlis re solved to leave the Court and devote herself entirely to the care and education of the children. At her request the Due de Chartres took a house for them at Bellechasse in the suburbs of Paris where she established herself with the twin princesses, one of whom died of small-pox when five years old. The young princes, Louis Philippe, then called Comte de Valois, and his brothers the Due de Montpensier and the Comte de Beaujolais, slept at the Palais Royal, the town residence of the House of Orleans, and were escorted to Bellechasse by their tutors every morning. The nephew and niece of Mme. de Genlis, Caesar Ducrest and Henrietta de Searcey shared the edu- cation of the d'Orl^ans children. The Pavilion at Bellechasse where they pursued their studies was fitted up with all necessary appli- ances, the walls were adorned with historical and my- thological paintings and maps. Mme. de Genlis wished to make her pupils hardy — none but the plainest food was served ; Princess Adelaide had to sleep on a hard bed and get up at six every morning. After their regular hours of study were over, the young people had no respite, even 85 THE LIFE OF MARIE AMELIE I their recreations were made to serve the purpose of education.^ After dinner they had no play, they had to take turns in reading aloud historical books or to listen while Mme. de Genlis read to them works she had composed for their benefit. They were expected to make comment, and if their remarks were point- less or badly expressed, their preceptress let them see her displeasure. Another amusement was to act scenes in history, and the boys fought again celebrated battles or sieges in the garden. Sometimes they were all taken to Paris to visit museums, picture-galler- ies, or manufactories, details as to which had been pre- viously communicated to them from the pages of En- cyclopaedias. Mademoiselle de Navailles ^ relates how she once accompanied the party on one of these expeditions. They visited a pin factory, and another establishment where vinegar and mustard were made. Some of the party paid no attention, but made jokes amongst themselves, which annoyed Mme. de Genlis. She spoke to them severely, reproached the princes for making no remarks on what they saw, and forbade the young ladies to talk. Every Saturday Mme. de Genlis received a select society at Bellechasse, at first composed of literary and artistic people and scientific professors, but later on of all the Kevohitionary leaders. At these gather- ings her pupils were always present. She wished to ^ The boys were taught carpentering, in which Louis Philippe became very proficient. -' She became Mme. de Gontaut, and left Mdmoires. Governess of children of Due de Berry. 86 THE LIFE OF MARIE AMELIE accustom them to social intercourse and to form their manners. Mr. Swinburne, who was in Paris, 1766, says in his journal : " 14th January. Spent the evening at Bellechasse with Mme. de Sillery.^ The Due de Chartres (Louis Philippe) is very well educated and well mannered, but rather formal and dressy. Beau- jolais is a fine spirited boy. Mile. Adelaide petite, but pretty." The Duchesse de Orleans was for many years very fond of Mme. de Genlis, and blind to the nature of the intimacy between the Due and the Gouvernante. Considering the character of the Due d'Orl^ans, it was not surprising that Mme. de Sillery-Genlis' reputation suffered, though she always protested her perfect innocence, and as it was well known that the Due had had many mistresses it is difficult to see why Mme. de Genlis should have been pitched upon as the alleged cause of the estrangement of the Due and Duchesse d'Orl^ans. It was more on account of the latter's disapproval of the tone of the education imparted by Mme. de Genlis,'^ her horror of the new revolu- tionary ideas, and her dislike that her children should associate as they did with the leaders of that party, that the Duchesse demanded the dismissal of the Gouvernante. It is certain that Mme. de Genlis had ^ The Comte de Genlis had inherited the estate and title of Sillery. Louis Philippe was now Due de Chartres, his grandfather having died. - Mme. de Genlis gave balls at Bellechasse, where her pupils danced to the tune of " Qa ira," and she wore a tricolour robe. 87 THE LIFE OF MARIE AMELIE estranged the children's affection. The three eldest certainly preferred her to their mother and were en- tirely under her influence. The Duchesse left the Palais Royal and refused to return till Mme. de Genlis had been dismissed. The latter had to go, but Adelaide d'0rl6ans was so devoted to her governess that she fell dangerously ill from her distress at the separation, and Mme. de Genlis was recalled. Her literary reputation stood very high, and she is accused of spreading the influences which afterwards caused the French Revolution. Like many others she was impressed with the crying evils of the time and the poverty and misery of the French people, and welcomed the new ideas of freedom and equality as the beginning of a new era, when wrongs should be redressed and the happiness of humanity be secured. Little did they think they were unchaining forces that they would be unable to control, and preparing the way for horrors from which they shrank in abhor- rence. Most of them fell victims to the ruin and death which they had brought on others. What is inexcusable, if true, is the part Mme. de Genlis played in the circulation of infamous pamphlets concerning the Queen and Court ; she is credited with being the author of some of them. The Due d'Orleans had always been the leader of the popular party against the Court. He detested Marie Antoinette.^ He was supposed to aim at the ^ It is said because she interfered to prevent the marriage of his daughter, Princess Adelaide, with the Due d'Angouleme, son of 88 THE LIFE OF MARIE AMELIE throne. At one time he was the idol of the mob, who used to cry : " Vive le roi d'Orl^ans," and at the be- ginning of the Revolution the d'Orleans' liveries were the only ones not insulted by the mob. Eventually these colours, the red, white and blue, became the emblem of the Revolution, the tricolour flag. Mme. de Genlis even took her pupils to the Cor- deliers' Club, where they saw " cobblers, porters and the lowest classes with their wives mounting the tribune and shouting against nobles, priests and the rich ". Louis Philippe was made a member of the Jaco- bins' Club. However, the d'Orleanist party was soon swamped by the Extremists. In the list, published 1792, of heads on which a price was set by order of the Assembl^e des Feuillants the name of Philippe Egalit^ appeared ; against it was set the following description : " He was for many years a rogue, a gambler and a libertine, but in con- sideration of the services he rendered to the country in the hour of danger, though he was actuated by interested motives, he will only be deprived of his rights to the throne ".^ The state of affairs was so precarious in 1791 that the Due d'Orleans begged Mme. de Genlis to take his daughter, Princess Adelaide, to England to be out Comte d'Artois, and, in the event of Dauphin's death, heir to crown. ^ He himself said he never aimed at the crown, his only ambi- tion being to live as an English squire, which position he thought most enviable. 89 THE LIFE OF MARIE AMELIE of the way. They remained there a year and were recalled to France by the Due d'Orleans in order to prevent the Princess Adelaide being placed on the list of emigres, which entailed loss of rights as a French citizen and confiscation of property. On the return to France, Mme. de Genlis heard from her husband that Philippe Egalite was doomed ; he was no longer of use to the Terrorists and they meant to get rid of him.* Mme. de Genlis had delayed obeying the sum- mons and arrived too late to prevent the Princess Adelaide being placed on the list of emigres. France was no safe place for her, and her father implored Mme. de Genlis, who wished to resign her post, to take his daughter across the frontier to Tournay. In her Memoires Mme. de Genlis gives an account of the farewell at Raincy. " We started next morn- ing. M. le Due gave me his arm to the carriage ; he ^ Mme. de Genlis, though seeing very little of him, was always on perfectly good terms with her husband, who, though at jfirst an admirer of revolutionary ideas, was a humane and honourable man, and viewed the excesses of the revolutionaries with horror. After recording his vote against the death of Louis XVI. he circulated copies of his opinion on that event, in which he said : "I did not vote for the King's death — " 1st. Because he did not deserve it. " 2nd. Because we have no right to judge hira. " 3rd. Because I consider it the greatest political mistake that could be made." Sillery-Genlis knew that he was signing his own death-warrant in publishing this declaration, but almost mad with horror at the state of France, and disgusted with life, he was indifferent to his fate. He was beheaded in 1796. ,, 90 THE LIFE OF MARIE AMELIE was pale and trembling. T was much agitated ; Made- moiselle was in tears. When we were in the carriage the Due d'Orl^ans stood in silence by the door with his eyes fixed upon me ; his gloomy, sorrowful look seemed to implore pity ; he seemed to forbode the fate awaiting him. I held out my hand, which he pressed, then he signed to the postilion to start. Neither I nor his daughter ever saw him again." The Due de Chartres, Louis PhiHppe, escorted his sister to Tournay. At this time the trial of Louis XVI. was taking place. Philippe Egalite when voting for his death said his soul and conscience required him to do so. But history relates that as he pro- nounced the vote even Terrorists shook their heads, and a groan and shudder ran through the assembly. His name was execrated throughout Europe, and when he visited England and appeared in Vaux- hall Gardens he was shunned as if he had the pest. His own days were numbered ; he had exhausted much of his wealth, which he had spent for Revolu- tionary purposes, and was no longer useful to his party, who had long got beyond the idea of a constitutional monarchy or indeed any kind of government with a king at its head. " One king no sooner guillotined than another made in his stead ? No ! the French patriots will have the whole race of Bourbons cleared off the soil of France with Egalit6 to bring up the rear. Poor Orleans Egalite, one ever begins to pity him. 91 THE LIFE OF MARIE AMELIE Rejected of all parties, to what corner of Nature can he drift for safety ? " ' It was said that he was observed sitting in a cab in the Place de la Revolution to witness the execu- tion of Louis XVI. When he himself was brought to trial, his vote was one of the crimes alleged against him. He had been arrested in Paris while playing whist at the Palais Egalit6 (so the Palais Royal was then called), transported to Marseilles where he was imprisoned, and remained in durance six months and was then brought back to Paris. " His indictment was soon drawn, his jury soon convinced. He finds himself made guilty of Royalism and conspiracy, nay it is a guilt in him that he voted the King's death, though he answers, ' I voted in my soul and conscience '. The doom he himself finds is death. 6th November, 1793, is the last day that Philippe is to see. On that morning he called for breakfast, oysters, two cutlets, best part of an ex- cellent bottle of claret, and consumed it with relish. An emissary from the Convention came saying that he might still render service to the State by telling the truth about a plot or two. Philippe answered that in the pass things had come to, the State had small claim on him, but in the interests of Liberty he was willing to give reasonable answers to reasonable questions, and leaning his elbow on the mantel-piece he conversed in an undertone with great composure till the summons came. At the door of the Conciergerie his attitude was erect and easy, almost commanding. ^ See Carlyle's French Revolution. The unapproachable work of genius which will always rank as one of the great books of the world. 92 THE LIFE OF MARIE AMELIE ''Three poor blackguards were to die with him ; it is said they objected to ride in his company, and had to be flung in neck and crop. The gallows vehicle gets under way. Philippe's dress is remarked for its elegance, green frock-coat, waistcoat of white piqu6, yellow buckskins, polished patent leather boots ; his air entirely composed, impassive, even easy. The tumbril passed slowly through the streets amid exe- crations. The cruel populace stopped him for some minutes at the home of his ancestors the Palais Royal, in front of which in huge tricolor letters was written : 'National Property'. For one instant Philippe's eyes flashed Hell-Fire, but the next instant he sat impassive. On the scaffold Samson was for drawing off his boots : ' Tush ' said Philippe, ' they will come oflf better after; let us have done, depichons noits\ His last words. He was not then entirely without good qualities, such as courage. God forbid that any living man should be without virtue of some kind. But probably no mortal ever had worse things recorded against him."^ Louis Philippe was with his sister at Tournay when they heard of the execution of Louis XVI. They were horrified, and more especially at their father's share in the matter. Louis Philippe wrote to his father in terms which it is said Philippe Egalite never forgave, and said he would never come back to France. Louis Philippe had fought bravely in the Republican army against ^ See Carlyle's French Bevohotion. 93 THE LIFE OF MARIE AMELIE the allied forces that were invading France, and dis- ting^iiished himself by his conspicuous bravery at the Battles of Valmy and Jemappes.^ But the Convention suspected their General Dumouriez, of Royalist sympathies and a desire to enter into a treaty with Austria which had for its object the placing of Louis Philippe on the throne of France. Commissioners were sent to arrest both Dumouriez and Louis Philippe, who had at that time gone to pay a visit to his sister at Tournay. Dumou- riez had accompanied him, wishing to pay his respects to the Princess d'Orleans. She had been condemned to death " for contumacy," and it was felt she was no longer safe at Tournay. Mme. de Genlis intended going on into Switzerland and wished to leave Ade- laide d'Orleans in the charge of her brother and Du- mouriez, but they themselves were in danger of arrest and knew that their troops were in a state of insur- rection. Mme. de Genlis had made her own pre- parations for departure, but had not told Princess Adelaide of this, wishing to avoid a painful farewell scene. " On a cold grey April morning, established in her hired vehicle on the streets of St. Amand, Mme. de Genlis was on the point of starting, postilions were cracking their whips, when Louis Philippe (who had previously used every effort to induce Mme. de Genlis to take his sister with her) appeared on the scene. He 1 Dumouriez spoke of him as the bravest among the brave, and said, " Far from desiring to ascend the throne, he would have fled to the end of the earth to avoid it ". 94 THE LIFE OF MARIE AMELIE had clutched the young Princess from her bed and bore her in his arms in her nightdress and dressing-gown ; he pushed her into the carriage among the bandboxes. A shrill scene, but a brief one, and off they go, through by-roads and hill-passes, and perils of conflicting armies safe into Switzerland, but almost moneyless. " ^ Louis Philippe up to the present time had been warmly attached to Mme. de Genlis and completely under her influence. He had an immense admiration for her, as a very young man admires a fascinating woman older than himself," but her egoism on this occasion opened his eyes and entirely changed his feelings towards her from that time forth. After the Conference at Ath the Due de Chartres was himself obliged to fly from the French army ; he travelled through Germany in a dogcart and rejoined his sister at Schaff'hausen. At Frankfort he read in a newspaper a report of a sitting of the Convention in which it had been said, " Let us put a price on the head of all fugitive Bourbons. I have already de- manded the death of the Due d'Orleans." Adelaide d'Orleans with her brother and Mme. de Genlis moved from one place to another in Switzer- land. As soon as it was found out who they were the authorities refused to allow them to remain. At last General Montesquiou Fezensac, a deputy ^ Cai-lyle's French Revolution. '^ In his journal, 1st Jan., 1791 (he was then eighteen) he wrote : " I was the first to have the pleasure of wishing my good friend Mme. de Genlis a happy New Year. I do not know what would become of me if I had to leave her." 95 / THE LIFE OF MARIE AMELIE of the nobility of 1789, who had taken refuge in Switzerland and had rendered important services to the City of Geneva, found an asylum for Mile. d'Or- le'ans and Mme. de Genlis in a convent at Bremgarten. To Louis Philippe the General said : " The only thing for you to do is to wander about in the mountains^ not making a stay anywhere/ He never saw his sister again till fifteen years had passed. Accompanied only by his faithful servant Beaudoin he traversed Switzerland on foot, an ex- penditure of thirty sous a day being the utmost he could afford for food, lodging and all other needs. " When he had only thirty francs left in the world he made his way back to Montesquiou, who obtained for him the position of Professor of Mathematics at the College of Reichenau, in the Grisons, with a salary of £75 per annum. He assumed the name of Cha- baud Latour, an emigrant to whom the position had been offered but who failed to present himself. Neither the masters nor pupils knew who Louis Philippe was, but he was much liked and respected. M. de Salis, a gentleman of high birth, was so much pleased with his manners that he offered him the post of tutor in his family. He was described as having a melancholy air, but quiet and modest in manner." While at Reichenau he heard of his father's death, after being there a year. He was overwhelmed with grief and humiliation, but as he was now Due d'Orl^ans he felt it his duty to take steps for the safety of his ^ In some towns in Germany placards were seen announcing, " Neither Jews, vagabonds nor emigrants are allowed to stay here ". 9G THE LIFE OF MARIE AMELTE mother, sister and brothers, and knowing that his father had invested large sums in England he wished to make an effort to obtain these resources, and to go with his family to America, there to live in retire- ment and forget the sufferings of his youth and the disgrace his father had brought on the name of Orleans. His mother, the Duchesse d'Orleans, had been uni- versally loved and respected and was left unmolested longer than the other members of the family, but she had at last been imprisoned in the Conciergerie, and was only released on the death of Robespierre, which opened so many prison doors and saved the lives of many who were there awaiting death. The two younger Orleans princes were still in prison at Mar- seilles. Louis Philippe left Reichenau, and getting a passport under the name of Corby (through the influence of a friend, Captain Yost St. Georges) he went to visit his sister at Bremgarten where he met an old friend, Mme. de Flahaut, who used her influence with the late American ambassador in Paris, Governor Morris,^ to obtain for him a sum of money sufficient to transport him to England and America. He went to Hamburg to await this necessary succour. There he met many of those who had belonged to the Constitutional party in France whose hopes had revived after the death of Robespierre. The Comte de Provence, after the death of the Dauphin to the Temple, had proclaimed his right to the throne under the title of Louis XVIII. , but his 1 Morris had received much hospitahty from the Duchesse d'Orleans when he was American ambassador in Paris. 97 7 THE LIFE OF MARIE AMELIE emissaries in France met with only limited encourage- ment, the Royalists promising their adherence " only if Monseigneur the Due d'0rl6ans does not come to place himself at our head". This induced Louis XVIII. to try to come to an understanding with Louis Philippe, and he sent Baron de Roll with a letter written by his own hand to assure Louis Philippe that he only required a viva voce assurance of repent- ance for '* wanderings from the right path and regret- table errors" to receive him as first prince of the blood and to give him a commission in the army of Cond6. The Due d'Orleans proved unmanageable. *' Er- rors and wanderings," he said. " Does the King number me among the rebels who in his Procla- mation he calls Traitors to the God of their Fathers and rebellious against the authority which God has ordained to govern them ? ^ ** So long as his Majesty does not make known his intention of giving France a limited monarchy, I shall consider it my first duty not to participate in measures that are contrary to my principles and opinions, which I cannot and never will sacrifice."' He also added that if he was known as an adherent ^ Louis XVIII. 's Proclamation on the death of his nephew had left no doubt that if he obtained the throne he would place the monarchy on exactly the same footing as before the Kevolution, taking no account of the changes in ideas and manners that had taken place, nor of the desire of many Loyalists for Constitutional changes. 2 The Emperor of Eussia said that Louis Philippe was the only Bourbon who was really a Liberal at heart, or understood liberal ideas. 98 THE LIFE OF MARIE AMELIE of Louis XVIII., whose agents were plotting the over- throw of the Directory, he would compromise the safety of his mother and two brothers in France. In 1793 the Duchesse d'Orleans, his mother, had been set at liberty, but her estates were sequestered and her two younger sons still in prison in Marseilles. She entered into negotiations with the Government of the Directory, who wishing to get rid of Louis Philippe, who as known favourite of the Constitutional party was a danger to the stability of the Directory, agreed to release the young princes and ameliorate the position of the Duchess on condition that they should go to America, and that their elder brother, the Due d'Orleans, should have preceded them to that country. Louis Philippe could not remain deaf to his mother's entreaties. He arrived in Philadelphia in October, 1796, and was joined there by his brothers in February, 1797. 99 CHAPTER V. Life of Louis Philippe after the execution of his father — Exile in America and England — Visits Sicily — Prejudice against him — Becomes engaged to the Princess Marie Am61ie, daughter of the King and Queen of the Two Sicilies — Marriage and life in Sicily — Fall of Napoleon and Eestoration of Louis XVIII. — The Due d'0rl6ans returns to France. The three d'Orleans princes travelled about in Amer- ica staying first in one place then in another. When they visited Cuba the Spanish Government, which was allied with the Directory, seized them and put them in prison. They contrived to escape to New York, and in January, 1800, obtained permission to go to England, which for a long time had refused to receive them. On arriving in England they took a house at Twickenham, where they lived very comfortably, but had a most modest establishment, their court consist- ing only of one loyal friend, M. de Montjoie. The Due d'Orleans went a great deal into society in Lon- don, and became very English in his manner of life and his dress. The Comtesse de Boigne,^ an old family friend who saw a good deal of the young princes, says : " M. ^ Memoirs of Comtesse de Boigne. 100 THE LIFE OF MARIE AMELIE le Due d'0rl6ans was fairly good looking, but had no distinction either in figure or manners. He never seemed quite at his ease. His conversation, though interesting, was somewhat pedantic for a man of his age. The Due de Montpensier was passionately fond of music, the Due d'Orleans tolerated it for his brother's sake. The three brothers were deeply at- tached to each other." Their long sojourn in the prisons of Marseilles had ruined the health of both the younger brothers, who showed symptoms of consumption. Of this fell dis- ease the Due de Montpensier fell a victim. He was buried in Westminster. A warm climate being thought necessary for Beaujolais, he was sent to Malta, and his brother wrote and asked permission of Ferdinando IV. to bring his brother to Sicily, but before permission arrived Beaujolais was dead at Malta. He was twenty-eight years old. The Due d'Orleans went to Sicily to thank the King for the permission given, and to pay his respects to the royal family, and his engagement to Princess Marie Amelie was arranged. By this time Napoleon was in power in France, and the Due d'Orleans saw that it was for his interest to unite with the older branch of the Bourbons (Louis XVIII. and Comte d'Artois and his sons), and a reconciliation was effected while he was in England. At a subsequent meeting Louis XVIII. acknowledged that both in ap- pearance, manners and ability, the Due d'Orleans was superior to his cousins, the Due de Angouleme and de Berry, sons of Comte d'Artois. Louis Philippe's 101 THE LIFE OF MAKIE AMELIE oi)inions had modified, and a letter ^ written at this time is extant in which he says : "If the wrongful employment of force succeeds in placing on the throne of France in fact, but not by right, any other than our legitimate King, we shall follow the voice of honour which bids us appeal in his name till our last breath to God, to Frenchmen, and our sword. I am bound to the King of France, my elder and my master, by all the oaths that can bind a man, by all the obligations that can bind a prince." His name was among the signatures of the royal family protesting against the usurpation of Napoleon, and also against the execution of the Due d'Enghien ; but he took no part in the intrigues of the emigres. The financial position of both sides prevented the immediate marriage of Louis Philippe and Marie Amelie. Meanwhile the King of Spain had abdicated, and Napoleon had taken the Spanish royal family to France. The Spaniards rose in insurrection against the French, and Ferdinando, King of Sicily, declared himself Regent of Spain, and sent his second son Leopold, Duke of Salerno, to represent him. Leopold was only eighteen, and, burning for an opportunity to distinguish himself. Due d'Orl^ans asked leave to accompany him, and to fight against the armies of Napoleon.' He and the Duke of Salerno landed in Spain in 1810, but the English Government inter- fered, the expedition came to nothing, and the two princes had to return to Sicily. The Due d'Orl^ans then went to Barcelona, where 1 By Due d'Orl^ans. 102 THE LIFE OF MARIE AMELIE his mother had taken refuge, to obtain her necessary consent to his marriage. When on 6th September, 1797, a Decree of the Five Hundred expelled "la Citoyenne Egalit^ " ^ and " la Citoyenne Verite " ^ from France, a member of the Council of the Five Hundred, Rouzet, asked permission to accompany them, for he had himself been imprisoned under the Terror, and had made the acquaintance of the Duchesse d'Orl^ans and become devoted to her. His respectful attach- ment vras inspired as much through pity for her misfortunes as by admiration for the smiling philo- sophy with which she bore them. The Duchesse d'0rl6ans, though of a sweet and pure nature, had not great strength of mind, or perhaps years of neglect from her husband and separa- tion from her family disposed her to be touched by the admiration and devotion of Rouzet. He obtained unbounded influence over her, called himself her Chancellor, and through her influence obtained from the King of Spain the title of Comte de Folmont.^ The position he thenceforward took up in her house- hold was the cause of her estrangement from the Due d'Orl^ans and her daughter, Princess Adelaide, who, after many years' exile, first with Mme. de Genlis at Bremgarten, and then with her aunt, the Princesse de Conti, at Fribourg, and in Bavaria and Hungary, had at last succeeded in joining her mother in Spain. She remained with her six years, and finally decided 1 Duchesse d'Orleans. 2 Her sister-in-law, Duchesse de Bourbon. ^ See Le Notres Vieux Papiers, le Comte de Folmont. 103 THE LIFE OF MARIE AMELIE to join her brother at Malta and then in Sicily, where she was introduced to her future sister-in-law, and received with much consideration. While the Due d'Orl^ans had been in Spain a party had been formed at the Sicilian Court to pre- judice King Ferdinando against him, and to oppose the marriage. They objected to the boundless ambition of Louis Philippe, his want of means, and the strait- ened circumstances of the Sicilian royal family who would have to support his household; and his mother withheld her consent. The course of true love never yet ran smooth, and it was not till Marie Am^lie had declared that if the marriage was not allowed she would become a Capuchin nun, that the King gave way. The Queen of Sicily, how- ever, exacted the presence of the Due d'Orlc^ans' mother at the wedding, and he went to Mahon in Minorca to persuade her. ^ The Duchesse d'Or- leans required the consent of the King (Comte de Provence, Louis XVIII.) to this marriage of the first Prince of the Blood. This obtained, she no longer withheld her own, and arrived in Palermo for the wedding. Maria Carolina received her very graciously, and the Duchesse d'Orl^ans reminded her that in 1776, when she and her husband were travelling in Italy, Queen Maria Carolina had said to her, " If God gives me a daughter I should like her to marry your eldest son, the Due de Valois, as his title then was ". ^ The entrance into Spain of Napoleon's army obliged her to leave Barcelona and Figueras. 104 Chapel in the Palace at Palermo, where Marie Amelie WAS Married Tiifacep. 104 THE LIFE OF MAKIE AMELIE The contract was signed on the 15th November, 1809; the letters of Louis XVIIL, dated Hartwell, England, were annexed. But King Ferdinando met with an accident and broke his leg, so the marriage was postponed till 25th November, and as the King could not stand, it had to be celebrated in his room. An altar was erected there, and the ceremony was per- formed by Mgr. Monarchia. Marie Ame^lie's wedding-dress was of cloth of silver of Sicilian manufacture. She wore a tiara of diamonds and some white feathers in her hair. An entry in her journal of this date says : "Knowing the sacredness of the tie I was about to form, I was filled with emotion and my limbs tottered under me, but the Due d'Orl^ans pronounced his ' Yes ' in such a resolute voice that it gave me courage ". After the ceremony in the King's room, the wed- ding party went to the chapel for a *'Te Deum " and the Service of Benediction. The Palace chapel is very small but beautifully proportioned, and is one of the most interesting and remarkable specimens of Saracenic-Byzantine architecture in existence. After the service in chapel the bride and bride- groom went out on the balcony of the Palace to show themselves to the populace, and by command of the King supped alone with himself and the Queen. In order to avoid the friction which inevitably arises in royal as well as other families, when house- holds live in too close intimacy, the King had given his daughter the Palazzo Santa Teresa, afterwards 105 THE LIFE OF MARIE AMELIE known as Palazzo d'0rl6ans, as a residence ; but it required repairs, and for a while the newly married couple had to remain in a set of apartments allotted to them in the Royal Palace ; but in superintending the work at Santa Teresa the Due d'Orleans found scope for indulging the love of building, which was one of his prominent characteristics. Ferdinando said of his son-in-law : '' He has * mal del pietro ' ". Just before his marriage the Due d'0rl6ans wrote the following letter to a friend, M. de Guilherry : *' I am about to marry the lady you wished me to marry, and if I were all that I am not, and if the times were what they are not, it would be difficult for me to make a marriage in any respect more advantageous to me. What a benefit it will be to me ! What a slap at prejudice ! What a means of reconciliation with the elder branch of my family, and of entering into close relations with the royal family of Austria ! What an advantage for me to marry a Bourbon ! " Marie Am61ie was twenty-seven years old and knew something of the world, so she was not sur- prised to find her married life one of trouble ; but she endeavoured to acquire an imperturbable temper, and to be as unmoved by the petty difficulties of domestic life as by great trials. M. de Folmont caused trouble between the Dowager Duchesse d'Orleans and her son and his wife. Besides this there were the difficulties caused by straitened means, for when Queen Maria Carolina was exiled the English Government also stopped the 106 THE LIFE OF MARIE AMELIE payment of 2,000 ounces monthly, which it had been arranged shouhl be given to Marie Amelie when she married. But her great affection for her husband enabled her to be happy in spite of all this. That the Due d'Orleans, for other than political reasons, was lucky in his wife we can well imagine, for she had been trained by a mother who, whatever defects of character she may have had, was certainly a de- voted and affectionate wife to an unfaithful husband, her inferior in mind and manners. That speech of the Queen of Naples is often quoted, in which she expressed her indignation to her granddaughter, the Archduchess Marie Louise, Napoleon's second wife, who forsook him in the day of adversity. She said to her : " When one is married it is for life. You should have tied your bed-curtains together and let yourself out of the window to rejoin him, rather than have deserted him in the hour of trial." This was the sentiment expressed by Maria Caro- lina, though Napoleon had been her direst enemy. Marie Amelie, in being allowed to choose her own husband, was more fortunate than most prin- cesses of her time, whose marriages were generally arranged for political reasons only. The greater num- ber, when hardly beyond the age of childhood, were sent to distant countries, where a different language was spoken and different manners and customs to those of their homes obtained, to marry men whom they had never seen and who were often most un- congenial and unsuitable husbands. 107 THE LIFE OF MARIE AMELIE There was much happiness in the beginning of Marie Amelie's married life. Her husband's sister, Adelaide d'0rl6ans, between whom and Louis Phil- ippe a very true and deep affection existed, made her home with them. The sisters-in-law were great friends, and Mile. Adt^laide gave French lessons to Marie Amelie,^ who called her ''My dear good Adelaide". In her journal Marie Amelie describes her sister-in-law as follows : *' She is about my height, her face is large, and she has a wide mouth. Her eyes are very fine and she has beautiful fair hair. She seems very amiable and witty, and pleases me greatly." Adelaide d'Orleans was a very remarkable woman, with much intellect, practical ability and strength of mind. She was destined to play a prominent part in the future of her brother and his family ; indeed she has been termed "one of the factors which de- termined the history of Europe in the beginning of the nineteenth century". The Palazzo d'Orleans became the rendezvous of all the clever and interesting people who came to Sicily, but differences of opinion on political matters between the Queen and the Due d'Orleans caused many painful scenes, and Marie Amelie was placed in a painful position between her love for her mother and her conviction (which she retained through life) that it was impossible for her husband to be in the wrong. The Prince Royal shared the liberal ideas ^ Even during her married life in France she wrote her daily journal in the ItaHan language. 108 00 o ■Jl 'A o o < PM THE LIFE OF MARIE AMELIE of the Due d'Orl^ans, but the Queen was so con- vinced that the French Revolution had been caused by the weak concessions of Louis XVI., that she would not even agree to reasonable reforms. The whole island was in a state of insurrection, and Lord William Bentinck, British ambassador at Palermo, was obliged to interfere, saying that England could not allow such a state of affairs to continue in a country whose Government and Court owed its ex- istence to the protection of English arms and the support of English money. He had a very high opinion of the Due d'Orl^ans, and said: "All the troubles of the Sicilian Government came from their not knowing how to profit by the treasure they had in the Due d'Orleans ". King Ferdinando was obliged to abdicate in favour of his son, and Bentinck was named Captain-general of Sicily. Botta, in his History of Naples, says : " The people are like the climate — always in extreme. On the one side we see extreme benevolence and ideal virtue ; on the other, hatred approaching ferocity. The his- tory of the Two Sicilies is that of conspiracies, civil wars, foreign wars, conflagrations, treachery, exe- cutions of the just and the unjust, acts of heroism and invincible courage. A Republic contaminated by rapine, Ferdinando twice driven away and re- stored, a Republic the slave of France, a Monarchy the slave of England. A Republic established by the agency of a soldier, a Monarchy restored by a priest (Ruffo). Those who fawned on the King or 109 THE LIFE OF MAKIE AMELIE Championnet, afterwards fawned on Joseph Bonaparte and his successor Murat." In the edict of 18th July, 1808, when Napoleon appointed his ''well-beloved brother-in-law, Joachim Murat, Grand- duke of Berg, to the throne of Naples and Sicily, vacant by the succession of my brother Joseph to the throne of Spain," it was added that if Caroline Murat survived her husband she should suc- ceed to the throne before her sons. She had more capacity than any of the other sisters of Napoleon, and when she arrived at Naples her beauty and grand air, and her four charming children, were greatly admired. To hear of the homage paid to her by the fickle Neapolitans was gall and wormwood to Maria Caro- lina, in Sicily. Though Bentinck had been appointed to be Captain- general of Sicily, Maria Carolina would not yield to his authority, and he felt that there would be no peace in the island so long as she remained there to influence the King, and he insisted on her retir- ing to Austria. Her youngest son, Leopold, Duke of Salerno, accompanied her. Until Marie Amelie married the Due d'Orleans it had never occurred to her to question the policy or government of her parents, but now her eyes were opened. At this time she wrote in her journal : " My heart was torn by conflicting emotions, sentiments of filial love, love of country, compassion, justice and honour. I seemed to float in a sea of anguish." To her cousin, the Emperor of Austria, she wrote 110 THE LIFE OF MARIE AMELIE commending to his care " the mother whose departure causes me the deepest affliction ". But the mother and daughter never met again, for in 1814 Queen Maria Carolina was found dead in her bedroom at Vienna, having been struck with apoplexy. In her last years at Vienna her chief pleasure was the company of Napoleon's little son, the King of Rome, her only great-grandchild. This boy's godmother was Caroline Murat, who had usurped Maria Carolina's throne. Queen Maria Carolina's influence at Vienna was a thing of the past, and at her death the Murats showed more respect to her memory than the Austrian Court, which did not go into mourning for her, while the Murats postponed the Court functions that were about to take place when the news of her death reached Naples. Maria Carolina had many fine qualities, but she could not realise that there must be a change in the governance of the world, that there was to be a new order of things because the old had accomplished its purpose. The departure of the Queen from Sicily delivered the Due d'0rl6ans from a very insecure position. She had not scrupled to declare that he was the moving spirit of the Opposition in Sicily, and made Ferdinando remove him from the post of Commander-in-Chief of the Sicilian army. The Due d'Orl^ans would not act against his principles, and when some of his friends who were leaders of the Reform party were arrested, he quite expected to meet with the same treatment. Ill THE LIFE OF MARIE AMELIE For a long time he kept a horse ready saddled and bridled in order to be able to take flight at a moment's notice. It must have been a most trying position for Marie Am^lie, what with anxiety for her husband's safety, and the pain of hearing her mother inveighing against him, and regretting that she had allowed the marriage. Besides these family and political discussions, the married life of Marie Am^lie was clouded by pecuniary trouble. The d'Orleans apparently had no resources except the pensions allowed to the Due d'Orleans and his mother and sister by the English Government, and they were not paid punctually. Poor Louis Philippe had incessantly to write begging letters, and applied to the Duke of Kent and Duke of Portland to use their influence to get these pensions paid. Prospects seemed to brighten when the Catalonian Government offered Louis Philippe a post in the army opposing Napoleon in Spain. This expedition, how- ever, came to nought, and Louis Philippe returned de- jected to Sicily. During his absence a son had been born to him, the Due de Chart res. He had looked forward to this child's birth with great joy and hopeful- ness. Writing to his friend Guilherry, he had said : " My wife will soon make me a father, Alleluia ". When writing after the child's birth Marie Amelie, to whom her sister-in-law had imparted her own ambitious views, said : ''July, 1810. Every one here looks upon your son as likely to become heir-pre- sumptive to the throne of France." When he returned to Palermo, Marie Am61ie had the joy of presenting 112 THE LIFE OF MARIE AMELIE their son to him. To a friend she describes her boy as " ravishing, very like his father ". Two daughters were born while they were in Sicily.^ The English Govern- ment insisted that the Due d'Orleans should live as a private person in Sicily. He chafed against this, and longed to be able to leave what was to him *' sleepy hollow ".- But it was not until the fall of Napoleon^ at the end of 1813, that a wider field was open to his energies. On the 23rd April, 1814, the English man- of-war, Aboukir, brought the news to Palermo. The Due d'Orleans rushed into his wife's room exclaiming *' Bonaparte is done for ! Louis XVIII. is re-established, and I am of!' to France in this ship which has come to fetch me ! " Marie Am6lie and her sister-in-law Adelaide wept for joy, and after an interchange of almost incoherent congratulations, all three went to inform King Ferdinando of the news. He knelt down, and bowing his head till it touched the ground, he offered thanks to God. It afterwards turned out that Louis XVIII. had not sent for his cousin, but the Due d'Orleans set off on the Aboukir, which landed him at Genoa. He was accompanied only by his English valet White, and Captain Gordon, but he was determined to assert from the first his position as first Prince of the Blood. At Marseilles he borrowed a general's uniform ^ Louise, afterwards Queen of the Belgians — Clementine, Prin- cess of Saxe-Cobourg, mother of Ferdinand, Tzar of Bulgaria. 2 " Ce dortoire." 113 8 THE LIFE OF MARIE AMELIE and reviewed the troops. At Lyons he did the same, and let it be known that he expected due honour to be shown to him wherever he stopped. On arriving at Paris he took up his abode at a hotel in the Rue Grange Bateliere, having sent on Captain Gordon to engage apartments. The same evening he went alone to the Palais Royal, the home of his forefathers. He did not give his name, and the guard tried to prevent his entrance, but the Due d'Orleans would not be hindered, he entered and knelt down and kissed the steps of the grand stair- case. At last he felt he had come again to his own. The next day, 17th May, he presented himself at the Tuileries. Louis XVIII. received him kindly, and reinstated him in his old rank in the French army, saying, " Twenty-five years ago you were a lieut- general, you are one to-day ". On the following day the King issued a decree restoring the Palais Royal and the Park of Mous- seaux to the Due d'Orleans and his sister, and two days later another decree restored to them all the estates which the House of Orleans had formerly possessed. The Jour7ial des Debats, 7th June, 1814, has the following paragraph : " Monseigneur le Due d'Orleans, first Prince of the Blood, has been living at the Palais Royal. Yesterday, on leaving the Palais at midday, he was acclaimed by an immense crowd which had assembled to welcome him back to Paris ; he was greatly moved." His first care was to put the Palais Royal in order. It had been devastated, and after the death 114 THE LIFE OF MARIE AMELIE of Philippe Egalit6 had been declared national pro- perty and used as a law-court, and afterwards let out in sets of apartments, and part of it used as warehouses. By July he had succeeded in getting a few rooms in a fit condition to receive his wife and family, and went to Palermo to fetch them. 115 CHAPTER VI. Kestoration of Louis XVIII. — His character — Comte d'Artois — " Monsieur " — Madame Eoyale — The Due d'Orleans presents his wife and family at Court — The manner of their reception — King's opinion of Marie Am61ie. It is generally supposed that Louis XVIII. was placed on the throne of France by the Allies, but he was elected Constitutional King of France by an Act of the Imperial Senate, which had just decreed the deposition of Napoleon. The Act was worded as follows : — (1) The French Government is monarchical and hereditary in the male line, in order of primogeniture. (2) The people of France of their own free will call to the throne Louis Stanislaus Xavier de France, brother of the late King, and after him the other members of the House of Bourbon in the old order. This decree was signed by the Republican party as well as the Legitimists. When his return to France was decided upon, Louis XVIII. said ; " For a few days I could under- stand the saying : ' Happy as a king ' ". Louis XVIII. is not a popular character, and jus- tice has hardly been done to his fine qualities. The power of Louis XVIII. consisted in his un- 116 King Louis XV III To fare p. 116 THE LIFE OF MARIE AMELIE shakable belief in himself and his rights. His firm conviction of the greatness, dignity, antiquity and majesty of his race gave him real power, which all who approached him felt. Even Bonaparte's generals confessed to its impressing them ; they were more in awe of this cripple in his arm-chair than of their great leader. It was this faith in his rights that gave him the sceptre. The first quality of a king is to believe in his royalty, as that of a priest is to believe in his religion. After their first interview, Guizot wrote : " The impotence of the King, combined with his dignity, made a profound impression on me. The glance and attitude of this old man glued to his seat, a haughty serenity, and in spite of his weakness a quiet con- fidence in the power of his name and his rights, were most striking." It is impossible not to admire the indomitable fortitude with which he bore the woes of many years of exile and poverty, to which were added the trials of bodily infirmity and a crippled condition, for he was a martyr to rheumatic gout. However, he never allowed ill-health to interfere with the performance of public duties, but said: ** A king may die, but cannot allow himself to be ill ". The only way in which he betrayed impatience was by insisting on his coachman driving him at top speed ; the rapid motion seemed a solace, and great was the expenditure of horse-flesh, the amount of horses used up in providing for his daily drive. 117 THE LIFE OF MARIE AMELIE Though unable himself to join the army, he was not without physical courage. When visiting the army of Conde on the Rhine, during the emigration, a ball shaved his forehead ; his retinue exclaimed in alarm, but he merely said : " If the ball had gone a trifle lower, the King of France would have been called Charles X., instead of Louis XVIII. Louis XVIII. 's wife had died while they were in exile at Hartwell, 1810. She was the daughter of the King of Sardinia ; the marriage had been arranged for the Comte de Provence by ambassadors, and he awaited the arrival of his bride with great anxiety, but was well satisfied when she appeared. Giving an account of their first meeting, he says : " She was neither handsome nor pretty, but she pleased me". The marriage was a kind of family gathering. Louis XV. was present, decorously reading in his prayer- book, surrounded by his family. In his Memoirs^ the bridegroom relates that "The Dauphin, afterwards Louis XVI., with misplaced sincerity, allowed himself to say, when I asked him how he liked my bride : ' Not much ; were I un- married, I should feel no great desire to have her for my wife '. I replied : ' I congratulate you that your taste has been better suited in your own wife. We are both satisfied with our lot'." " My wife was endowed with estimable qualities, and I never had cause to find fault with her. Her sole study was to please me and adopt my friendships 1 MSmoires de Louis XVIII, Eecueillis et mis en ordre par M. Le Due de D . Paris, 1833. 118 The Comtesse de Provence Wife of Louis XVIII To face p. 118 THE LIFE OF MARIE AMELIE or dislikes without trying to influence me. But Court intrigues disturbed our peace. As a matter of policy I showed consideration to my grandfather's favourite, Mme. du Barry ; this enraged the Dau- phiness, Marie Antoinette,! and her husband made remarks which induced my wife to say : ' Till now I had thought that politeness constituted part of the education of French Princes of the Blood '." In speaking of his early married life the Comte de Provence says : " Ennui reigned at Versailles during the last years of my grandfather's reign ; he was in great dread of death, and it was a great shock to him when the Marquis de Chauvelin fell dead at his side while he was playing cards with Mme. du Barry. " Next day he said to Due de Richelieu : ' Chau- velin has gone below before us to secure my place and yours '. " 'Ah, Sire,' replied Richelieu * it is on all occa- sions my duty to give precedence to your Majesty.' '* ' On this occasion, Monsieur,' replied the King, ' your age will exempt you.' " During the emigration and the days of exile the Comte de Provence and his wife were separated for many years ; he fell under the influence of the Comtesse de Balbi,^ and his wife under the influence of her lady- in-waiting, and coldness sprang up between them ; 1 Of this lady the story is told that when the Comte de Pro- vence heard of her flirtations with others during his absence he wrote to her : " Caesar's wife should be above suspicion ". She replied : " I am not your wife, and you are not Caesar ". 119 THE LIFE OF MARIE AMELIE but they eventually came together again, and when her death occurred at Hartwell her husband, writing to a friend, remarked: "I confess I did not realise how much I loved the Queen" (Louis XVIII. dated his accession from the day of his nephew Louis XVIL's death in the Temple, years before the Restoration), " I miss her a hundred times a day. I say to myself, mechanically, I must tell her this or that, and then I remember that I have no one to confide in." Louis XVIII. always needed a confidante, and he found one after his return to France in Zoe, Mme. du Cayla ; she was endowed with much wit and had the tone of the great world, and with her he enjoyed the intellectual conversation that he so much prized. A more detailed account of Mme. du Cayla will be given in a subsequent chapter. When Louis XVIII. returned to France he said one of his first cares was to get rid of his friends the Allies : *' For fear they should take a fancy to my kingdom if they stayed too long in it ". He relates how, when he lay down to rest the first night of his arrival at the Tuileries in his brother's room, which had recently been occupied by Bonaparte, he could not sleep, visions of those he had lost, and the terrible scenes they had lived through, passed through his brain, menacing phantoms seemed to appear through a blood-coloured vapour. " I was thankful, when I found myself alone," he wrote, " to be able to relieve myself by sighing and even sobbing without restraint, as well as by prayers. I made a firm resolu- 120 THE LIFE OF MARIE AMELIE tion never to act in such a way as to expose myself and my family to such a fate as my brother's had been." ^ " I found," he says, at a later date, " a new France, new habits, manners and costumes, and underneath an outward show of deference, much self-esteem and a profound conviction of individual worth. What greatly surprised me was the avidity for titles, rank, crosses of honour, etc. I said to myself, where are the true Republicans, those who were so contemptuous of kings, nobles and privileges ? " The ancient families returned to their accustomed places at Court, so did the new nobility, " Les valets de Bonaparte," as Louis XVIII. calls them. The first wished to retake the place they had lost at the Revolution, the second would not yield the place they had conquered. Endless quarrels resulted, the Court preferred to talk with old friends, and the middle-class ladies were furious that no notice was taken of them. It was often announced in the Gazette that this or that gentleman had been granted an audience by the King ; it was generally for no important purpose, but generally with reference to some complaint of their wives or daughters as to precedence or privilege. The King said all this made his life a burden to him, his head whirled, he could hardly believe that great generals or statesmen would descend to occupy them- selves with such puerilities. Louis XVI 11. was polite and gallant in the style of a gentleman of the old regime. He had a weakness ^ Memoirs of Louis XVIII. 121 THE LIFE OF MARIE AMELIE for ladies who were witty and had the tone of the great world, and endured the society of the others with resignation. Seeing Marshal Berth ier, who had been loaded with benefits by Napoleon, hasten to do homage on his arrival, Louis XVIIL made some painful reflections on the human heart and the rareness of gratitude. For the French say : *' II nous faut du nouveau n'en fut il plus au monde ". Louis XVIII., while doing justice to his good qualities, thoroughly distrusted the Due d'OrMans and thought with Barras that he would be better in Sicily. Barras said : " Even Republicans think of him as a Constitutional King. He would always be a rallying point for Revolutionaries. Bonaparte is to be feared, but he is far off; but were d'Orleans here he would be a rallying point for the Opposition." Louis XVIIL had, however, a very great esteem and affection for the Dowager Duchesse d'Orleans and sympathy for the cruel tribulations she had undergone, and gave " a great proof of it," he said, *'in allowing her son to return to France ". "The Due d'Orleans," he said, "has done a little of everything in his life, has been alternately prince, Republican, soldier, emigrant, Professor of Mathe- matics, a citizen of the United States, an English gentleman, a Sicilian noble, but has now returned to his rank as a Prince of the Royal House of Bourbon, The different positions he has ' filled have left marks on his character, which is complex. He has great abilities, and has received a perfect education." 122 THE LIFE OF MARIE AMELIE Louis XVIIL did not like Adelaide d'Orldans, Louis Philippe's sister, though he admitted that her conduct during exile entitled her to respect. He thought very highly of Marie Amelie, and records in his Memoirs ; " I had heard a great deal in favour of this Princess, but when I became personally ac- quainted with her, I found in her many more good qualities than I had been led to expect. Such a wife in some degree quieted my apprehensions as to the Due d'0rl6ans." The prosperous days of the Sicilian Monarchy had long been over, and Marie Amelie quitted Sicily with no regret but that of leaving her father ; as for her husband, his mother and sister, for them poverty, exile, and humiliation were over and they were returning to their beloved France, to the wealth and honours appertaining to the House of Orleans. They landed at Marseilles, journeyed by boat and coach to Lyons, where they were received with due honours. At Dijon they found Comte d'Artois, who had been sent by the King to meet them. This was Marie Amelie's first meeting with the Prince who had been such a prominent figure in the early married life of her unfortunate aunt, Marie Antoinette. The Count d'Artois was the idol of the Legitimist party. Al- though his youth was past, he still had a fine figure and gallant bearing, and was indeed the beau-ideal of a French Prince, courteous, chivalrous and charming. During the Revolution, Burke said that if the Bourbon race was ever restored it would have to be by a prince who could sit eight hours a day on horseback. No 123 THE LIFE OF MARIE AMELIE captain in the guards managed his charger with more skill and address, no courtier was more perfect in all the graces that dignify manners than Comte d'Artois, the King's brother, and the death of his beloved mistress, Mme. de Polastron, made such a profound impression on him that he had quite abjured the libertine habits of his youth. He wished to forget Egalite and receive the Due d'0rl6ans as his cousin and friend, and though the first meeting was somewhat embarrassing, he showed himself full of consideration and attention. He made the whole d'Orl^ans party don white cockades, which he gave them. He himself wore a large one in his hat. He accompanied his cousins to Paris. It was indeed a new Paris for the Due d'Orleans, his mother and his sister. Another generation had arisen. Man- ners, institutions and religious spirit all were different to what they had known. The streets and appearance of the city were new — Napoleon had embellished it with fine new buildings and bridges — all traces of the Ke volution had vanished. The day after their arrival in Paris the whole d'0rl6ans family went to pay their homage to the King. The Dowager Duchess and her daughter Adelaide especially wished to thank him for the re- storation of their property. Louis XVIII. had estab- lished his bodyguard and military retinue on a footing of great splendour, and the d'Orleans family were received in great state. The royal guard presented arms, and the drums beat when they descended from their carriages. A majestic major-domo conducted 124 THE LIFE OF MARIE AMELIE them to the King's apartment, where the whole of the E-oyal Family were assembled. The King was seated in his wheel chair/ he wore a powdered wig and queue, and velvet boots and leggings. His face was very handsome, his features fine, but he was very corpulent and permanently crij^pled by gout. His intellect and vast stores of knowledge made him the superior in whatever society he might find himself. His manner was most royal and dignified, and he was capable of implying every shade of approval or disapproval by his smile. He received the Due d'Orleans and his sister very coolly, but greeted the Dowager Duchess and Marie Am^lie with warmth ; spoke in praise of her mother, for whom she was in mourning ; ^ offered his condol- ences, and then introduced her with much cordiality to her cousin, Madame Koyale,^ Duchesse d'Angou- l^me. Madame Royale received Marie Amelie very affectionately, but her manner to the rest of the d'Orleans party belied the polite words she was forced to address to them, although even Louis XVIII. was forced to admire the demeanour of the Due d'Orleans on this occasion, and wrote : " He possesses exquisite tact and knows exactly the right thing to do ; it would be impossible to have more dignity and grace 1 He was crippled from gout. 2 The news of her mother's death had only reached Marie Am6Ue at Fontainebleau, and she found the Palais Royal draped in black. 3 Marie Therese Charlotte, only daughter of Marie Antoinette, and wife of Due d'Angouleme, son of Comte d'Artois, heir-pre- sumptive to the throne. 125 THE LIFE OF MARIE AMELIE of manner than he has. He surpassed himself on this occasion — even Madame Royale had to acknow- ledge it, though she had felt great repugnance to meeting him, for she could not forget Egalite. However, by degrees she got used to the pres- ence of the Due d'Orleans, and received him almost graciously." Louis XVIII. was charmed with Marie Amelie at this first meeting. Her strongly marked Bourbon features, her demeanour, the reserve and appropriate- ness of her replies showed all the traditions of race that were so dear to him. He tried to disarm the Due d'Orl(^ans by loading him with riches, but made a marked difference in his treatment of Marie Amelie and his treatment of her husband and his sister. As daughter of the King of Naples, the title of Royal Highness was given to Marie Amelie, but not allowed to the Due and Mile. d'Orlc^ans. When they went to the Tuileries both folds of the door were thrown open for the entrance of Marie Amelie, then one fold was closed, and the Due d'Orleans and his sister had to enter through the other half ! Madame Royale always treated Marie Amelie with the greatest affection and respect, and said : " She is so good, so excellent, so closely related to us". Louis XVIII. has been called an egoist and accused of being cold-hearted, but his feelings for Madame Royale show him in a different light. He was greatly impressed with the nobility of her character when he received the first letter she addressed to him on her 126 THE LIFE OF MARIE AMELIE release from the Temple. After the execution of her father and mother she was for a long time alone in this prison with her aunt, the noble and saintly Mme. Elizabeth, who must have had great influence in the formation of her character. She was sixteen years old at the time that the execution of Mme. Elizabeth left her absolutely alone at the mercy of the blood- thirsty monsters who had taken the lives of various members of her family. At this time her little brother was being slowly done to death in the same building, but she was not allowed to see him, and no one would answer her questions, so she was ignorant of his fate in the rooms underneath her. She occupied a small room at the topmost floor of the fortress. Her aunt had taught her to wait upon herself, so every morning she arose, bathed and dressed herself, and did her hair, then put her room in order. Then timing herself by her watch, she would walk up and down the room for an hour to make up for lack of proper exercise. Then she would read over again one of the few books that were in her possession, and mend her scanty wardrobe. The prison commissioners visited her three times a day to see that she had not contrived to escape ! In the winter she suffered much from cold and chilblains through insufficient firing. For twelve months, from May, 1794, to June, 1795, she never set eyes on a woman. A man brought her meals to the door, she took what was brought, handed out used crockery and shut the door. After this date the authorities decided to improve her condition, she was provided with whatever clothing she asked for, 127 THE LIFE OF MARIE AMELIE and allowed to walk on the platform above her room every evening. She was also allowed needles, thread and knitting materials, as well as tea and sugar and chickens for dinner, also cakes and chocolate. Public sympathy seemed to have been aroused for the desolate girl, and the Committee of General Safety appointed Madame de Chantereau, a kind and charming woman, to be her companion. A deputation from the City of Orleans demanded her release at the bar of the Hall of Convention. Their petition was favourably received, and it was resolved to enter into negotiations with her cousin, the Emperor of Austria, and to give her up to him in exchange for some French prisoners in his power. The presence of Mme. de Chantereau very much alleviated the trials of the young princess's life ; Mme. de Mackau and de Tourzel, old members of her parents' household, were allowed to visit her. The preparations for her going to Austria were completed ; a suitable escort and even a trousseau were provided, and on 18th December, 1795, she left the Temple at midnight (probably to avoid a popular demonstration) and for ever, having been three years there in captivity. News had reached Louis XVIII. at Verona of the proposal to set his niece at liberty, and he found means to get a letter through to her begging her to look upon him as a father. She replied saying that his letter had given her the first moment of real happiness that she had known for three years. 128 Marie Therese de BouRBoif, Madame Royale, at the time of HER Release from the Temple Prisox To/are I). 128 THE LIFE OF MARIE AMELIE When Louis XVIII. heard that she was to be sent to Austria, his one idea was to prevent her con- tracting a marriage with one of her Austrian cousins. He looked upon her as a valuable political asset. Her youth, sex, and misfortune had evoked universal sympathy for the Orphan of the Temple, as she was called, and a marriage between her and the Due d'Angouleme, heir-presumptive to the throne, would be very advantageous to the Legitimist cause, on account of her birth, she being the only living child of the last monarch, Louis XVI., as well as on account of the popular feeling for her. He wrote to her telling her never to forget that she was a Frenchwoman, and that it had been her parents' wish she should marry the Due d'Angouleme. The Austrian Emperor sent an escort to the frontier to Basle to meet his niece, and she was received at Vienna with every mark of considera- tion. She wrote to Louis XVIII. : " I await with im- patience the orders of my King and uncle. At Vienna I must show to the Emperor all the gratitude I owe him for having obtained my freedom, but I should never take any steps in my future life without your consent, whatever may happen. And be assured that your niece, like her father, will always love France and her family. From you, my uncle, I im- plore pardon for all misguided Frenchmen, and I lay at your feet the homage and respect of all good Frenchmen. I would rather suffer discomfort and poverty with my relations than live at the court of 129 9 THE LIFE OF MARIE AMELIE a prince who shows himself their enemy. I have one boon to ask of you, my uncle, which is to pardon Frenchmen and restore peace. I, whose father, mother, brother, and aunts' lives they have taken, demand it. It will be for your welfare. You will never ascend the throne by force of arms. Opinions change but peace is necessary. In Paris people are dying of hunger and detest the Government, but also they detest foreigners. They would not welcome a king who comes to them sword in hand. I implore you to issue a new manifesto. In the name of my parents, who loved Frenchmen, I implore you to give peace to France." Louis XVIII. was profoundly moved by this letter, which was a very remarkable one to be written by a young girl. In her solitary life a noble spirit had been fostered. From that time forward he never ceased negotiating till he was able to receive his niece in his home and arrange for her marriage with the Due d'Angouleme. Four years dragged away before this was accomplished. The Emperor Paul of Russia had given him an income and the old palace of the Dukes of Courland to reside in at Mittau. It was a fine place, not unlike Ver- sailles, and before the arrival of his niece there was no detail for her comfort and convenience that was too small for Louis XVIII. to attend to. When she arrived, his joy and delight transformed him, and it might have been thought he was the bridegroom and not his nephew, the Due d'Angou- leme, who was very shy and retiring. 130 THE LIFE OF MARIE AMELIE The party had driven out some way to meet Mme. Royale's carriage, and when they returned Louis XVIIL called to the household : " She is here ! She has come ! " casting aside his usual impassive de- meanour. The prospective bride and bridegroom had not met since they were children, but since the marriage had been arranged had corresponded with each other. The Due d'Angouleme was three years older than his bride. His father, Comte d'Artois, was one of the first of the royal family to leave France ; his sons accompanied him, and their years of exile were passed at Turin (the Court of their grandfather, the King of Sardinia), at Coble ntz, where he served his apprentice- ship in the Royalist army, in the Netherlands, in England, and finally for many years at Edinburgh, where they had to endure a life of great privation. The letters ' of Marie Th^rese had let Louis XVIIL discern plainly that both in intellect and character she was the superior of the Due d'Angouleme, who was apathetic, disinclined to study, without martial ardour or " savoir vivre," with ungenial manners. He was, however, sincere, kind-hearted and generous, and full of real courage that only needed an oppor- ^ Thinking that letters were intercepted at the Austrian Court, Louis XVIII.'s emissary resorted to subterfuge to deliver them. This displeased the Princess. She wrote : "I disapprove of M. de Guiche's method. When one is doing no wrong, one need not hide it. My position requires me to be above any suspicion of double dealings. You need not fear that letters are opened. It is thought natural you should write to me ". 131 THE LIFE OF MARIE AMELIE tunity to show itself. He had during his stay in England and Scotland imbibed liberal ideas which were rather a shock to Louis XVIII. He was sincerely religious and careful in his religious duties, which was a quality likely to endear him to his bride, who in that respect resembled him. As they had not met since childhood, Louis XVIII. thought it well to send a description of the Due d'Angouleme to Marie Th^rese, and he ended by saying : "It will be the more easy for you to be happy with him since his heart has been given to none but you, and his principles will ensure that this first sentiment will also be the last. I count much on your influence with him, for you will, I think, not be satisfied that he should be only an affectionate husband ; you would wish him to be worthy of the high position which we cannot doubt he is destined one day to occupy. Born with excellent capacities, a life of forced in- action has discouraged him. When he learns from you yourself that the best means to please you is to make himself worthy of you, this is all that will be needed to excite him to study, and France will one day owe its happiness to you ".^ The marriage was celebrated at the chapel of the Palace at Mittau, on 10th June, 1799, by Cardinal Montmorency and the Abbe Edgeworth,- in the pres- ence of many French dmigres, the nobility of Cour- land and Russian officials. Paul I. sent the bride a diamond necklace, and a letter in which he said : ^ Daudet's Histoire de V emigration. 2 Who had been with her father at his execution. 132 THE LIFE OF MARIE AMELIE " Your misfortunes, virtues and heroic courage have made you an object of interest to all well-disposed people. When you re-enter France see only the repentance of a nation which deplores the crimes of scoundrels to whom she has had the misfortune to give birth". The Comte d'Artois was unable to be present at his son's marriage, and Louis XVIII. wrote him an account of it and thus describes the bride : ** She is like both her father and mother. At the first glance she would not be thought pretty, but she gains on one. She is well made, carries herself well, holds her head to perfection, moves with ease and grace. Her natural gaiety has not been destroyed ; when her thoughts can be turned from the terrible past, she laughs heartily. She is sweet, kind and loving, but in public her demeanour is that of a Princess accus- tomed to hold her Court. She has the mind of a person of mature age, but she is as innocent and pure as the day she was born." The Due d'Angouleme had always wished to marry his cousin, and his shyness soon wore off; the young couple were genuinely in love with each other. Louis XVIII. wrote : " I wish that the Court of Vienna, who affected to pity my niece for her marriage and to look upon her as a victim to family exigencies, could see them together ". Napoleon said that Madame Royale was the only man of her family, and when she returned to France, after the Restoration, she became the idol of the army, but she was not popular in Court circles. 133 THE LIFE OF MARIE AMELIE Her rigid adherence to the etiquette of the old rc^gime, the horror (which she did not attempt to hide) she felt for all who had taken any part in the Revolution, many of whom held high positions in the new Government, and a stiff ungenial manner, obscured her many fine qualities and real nobility of heart. Louis XVIII. said the Parisians could not forgive her because she could not forget. At the Tuileries she used the apartments on the first floor that had been her mother's. Her own little sitting-room was hung with white velvet embroidered mjieurs de lys, the last work of Marie Antoinette and Mme. Elizabeth. Her prie-dieu was a stool on which her brother, Louis XVII., had sat in the Temple. In it was a drawer in which she kept some treasured relics : the black silk vest and white cravat worn by Louis XVI. on the day of his death, a lace cap worked by Marie Antoinette in prison, some fragments of a fichu worn by Mme. Elizabeth on the scaffold. Every year, on the 21st January and 16th October, the anni- versaries of the deaths of her father and mother, she shut herself up in this room and passed the day in prayer. Many years of exile and hope deferred had withered away all traces of good looks and given an ineffaceable tinge of melancholy to her appearance and character, and her adherence to an old-fashioned and unbecoming style of dress exposed her to the ridicule of the more frivolous Parisians, but all who really knew her loved and respected Madame Royale. 134 THE LIFE OF MARIE AMELIE When the d'Orleans family returned to Fiance she was the first lady of the Court, and also during the subsequent reign, for the wife of Charles X., as well as the wife of Louis XVIII., had died before the Restoration. 135 CHAPTER VII. Life at the Palais Eoyal — The Hundred Days — The Life of the d'Orl^ans Family in England — Louis XVIII. 's Opinion of the Due d'Orleans — His Eeturn to France with his Family. Soon after their arrival in Paris Marie Amelie gave birth to her second son ^ the Due de Nemours.^ Louis Philippe was much occupied in negotiations for the settlement of his proper estates and recover- ing from those into whose hands they had fallen. In this he was much assisted by Mdme. Adelaide who had a wonderful head for business. By the help of their devoted man of business, Dupin, they arrived at an arrangement by which, after paying only 4,500,000 instead of the 25,000,000 demanded, they entered into possession of their father's great fortune. The Palais Royal soon became the meeting-place of the elite of the old families of France, as well as the marshals, senators and generals who had been converted into Peers of France during the Empire, and also many men who had risen to eminence during the Revolution. The rigid etiquette maintained at 1 On hearing that she had given birth to a son she said to M. de Blacas : " Be so good as to tell the King he has one more faith- ful subject ". - Louis XVIII. and Duchesse d'Angoul6me were godparents. 136 THE LIFE OF MARIE AMELIE the Tuileries made the royal receptions tedious and a bore ; but at the Palais Royal receptions, which were held the first Wednesday of every month, there was gaiety and movement and the pleasures and amusements of good society. The simplicity and graciousness of the Due d'Orleans was universally praised, and Mdme. Adelaide, who detested con- ventionality, was talkative, and had a very cordial manner, was very popular. People stood a little more in awe of Marie Amelie, who, Talleyrand said, was " the greatest great lady in Europe ". Few people were more intimate with the d'Orleans family than the Comtesse de Boigne, and in her Memoirs she speaks as follows of Marie Amelie : "I cannot overestimate the veneration and tender devotion I feel for the Duchesse d'Orleans. She was adored by all about her. The more often any one came in contact with her, the deeper was the venera- tion and respect she inspired. Her sympathetic tact in no way modified the loftiness of her sentiments and the strength of her character. She treated everybody with the kindness natural to her, but her attitude was marked by such delicate shades of consideration that each individual could learn his position in her society. She had persuaded herself that she had no head for business (although her opinions enjoyed deep respect in the family councils) ; she thought her sister-in-law Adelaide, had much greater capacity for dealing with affairs and yielded to her in questions of politics. The sisters-in-law were so diff'erent, and belonged to such widely separated schools of thought, that they 137 THE LIFE OF MARIE AMELIE would not have been naturally congenial to each other had they not been united by their common devotion to the Due d'Orleans. Mdme. Adelaide lived only for her brother, and never was there an affection more passion- ate than that of Marie Amelie for her husband. In full dress her appearance was admirable ; she was very gracious but extremely dignified. In her eyes there was an expression that seemed to emanate from a pure and noble soul, and I am convinced that the Duchesse d'Orleans owed much of the fascination that she exercised over the most hostile people to the in- fluence of that glance."^ Excellent concerts were arranged under the direction of Mdme. Adelaide, whose taste for music had been cultivated by Mme. de Genlis, and who was herself a fine harpist. Mdme. Adelaide delighted in showing Paris to her sister-in-law ; together they visited the old Paris of legend and history. There was not a church or an interesting place that they left unvisited. To en- courage art they visited the studios, and were often seen at the theatres. They walked unattended in the public gardens, conversing freely with any acquaint- ances they might meet. But these good times did not last long. Marie Amelie was not yet to know the blessing of a peaceful and secure home. The d'Orleans family had only been twelve months in France when Napoleon escaped from Elba, March, 1815, and the King and royal family fled to Ghent in most undignified haste. ^Mme. de Boif^ne, daughter of Marquis d'Osmond, French ambassador in London. 138 M. David Marie Amelie, Duchesse d'Orleans, and her eldest son THE Due DE ChARTRES To face ji. 138 THE LIFE OF MARIE AMELIE It seemed as if all kings in the nineteenth century- were obsessed with the fear of sharing the fate of Louis XVI., and as soon as their power was threatened, for fear of being too late, they fled without striking a blow. The King of Naples had set the example, as soon as the French appeared on his borders. Louis XVIII. did the same on the approach of Napoleon — Charles X. as soon as there was a revolt against his Ordinances. Louis Philippe did the same, and the year of his flight saw the abdication of the Emperor of Austria, and in the same year the King of Prussia, afterwards the Emperor William L, having become unpopular in Berlin, fled in disguise to England. The old theory of the Divine Right of Kings was exploded. Kings apparently bowed to the spirit of the age, and acknowledged that they reigned not " by the Grace of God," but "by the Will of the People". Louis XVIII. did not hold these opinions, but they were forced on him. Well might a young Italian Prince, the Duke of Parma, afterwards King of Etruria, write to a friend : " In these days a King's calling is no longer worth anything, still less that of an heir-presumptive. After much reflection I have made up my mind to assure my own independence. I think I could do so by setting up manufactures in Spain where there are none. I want you to come and help me.^ My father-in-law, the King of Spain, will supply the necessary funds. When we have made our fortune we will go to some place where we 1 This letter is addressed to the distinguished scientist, Comte Chaptal, in whose Memoirs it is to be found. 139 THE LIFE OF MARIE AMELIE can live in peace, if there is such a place left on earth." On the 3rd of March, Louis XVIII. (as he relates in his Memoirs) had got out of bed on the wrong side and worried his valet sorely. While dressing, a packet was brought to him. After unwinding many folds of paper a small sheet appeared on which were written the words : '* Tremble, tyrant ! Bonaparte is coming, and the fate of Louis XYI. is reserved for thee." The consternation of M. de Blacas restored the King to good humour, for he treated the matter as a joke. However, on the 5th of March the King, who had been confined to his room with gout, had managed in the evening to get into the saloon and receive visitors. He was enjoying a literary discussion when Blacas entered and announced that Bonaparte had landed at Frejus. " The remembrance of that moment will be bitter to me as long as I live," wrote Louis XVIII. " I sent for the Council of Ministers and said to them : ' Bonaparte has not come recklessly ; he must have supporters here who have brought him. There was a traitor among the twelve apostles ; I am not Jesus Christ, and the number of generals is more than twelve, but I know at least four who are not loyal to me. We must convoke a special sitting of the Chamber and declare Bonaparte rebel and outlaw, and decree that the law against such be carried out in his case.' " I sent for M. le Due d'Orleans, wishing him to accompany Monsieur,^ who was to go to Lyons 1 " Monsieur " always means the King's brother, Comte d'Artois, afterwards Charles X. 140 THE LIFE OF MAKIE AMELIE to rally the garrison. The Due cl'Orleans was little disposed to take the journey, but when I demanded it of him in a peremptory manner he acquiesced. His indignation against Bonaparte was immense and he said these events would prove who were really my friends or the reverse. He and Monsieur took leave with a bustling air of importance." They went with Marshal Macdonald, who gave vent to an ejaculation of despair when he received the King's command to place himself at the head of the army. He came to the Palace and told the King frankly that he was broken-hearted at having to fight against his former leader and Emperor, but that the confidence the King showed in him would not allow him to think of anything but the duty of the moment. His conduct was very different to that of Marshal Ney, whose speech about bringing back Bonaparte in a cage is so well known, as is his subsequent desertion of the Royalist cause on meeting Bonaparte, and the penalty he suffered after the latter's defeat at Waterloo. The apartments of the Palace could not contain the crowd that thronged there from morning till night, offering advice, protesting loyalty, and loud in indignation against " the Monster " Bonaparte. The visits of the Corps Diplomatique comforted the King, who saw in this a sign that the Powers would not desert him. " Messieurs," he said to them, " you see me in a suffering state, but it is from gout, not from anxiety as to the result of Bonaparte's landing, for my cause is the cause of Europe. If Bonaparte succeeds, war will break out everywhere." 141 THE LIFE OF MARIE AMELIE But Louis XVIII. hardly knew who really were loyal or the reverse. Marshal Soult was no speaker, and employed Michaud to compose a proclamation for him to deliver to the troops. It began : " Sol- diers, who has Bonaparte come to seek ? Traitors ! What does he want ? Civil war 1 Will he now find followers among the soldiers whose sufferings he has so often exploited for his own ends ? Does he despise us enough to think that we could desert our legitimate Sovereign, the father of his people ? " etc., etc. Marshal Soult was so afiected by the eloquence of this proclamation, that he wept while reading it aloud to the King, who, seeing him thus affected, did not suspect that he himself was one of the traitors, and in touch with Bonaparte. Monsieur and the Due d'0rl6ans returned from Lyons, having been quite unsuccessful in their efforts to arouse the spirit of loyalty in the garrison. In this emergency Louis XVIII. made up his mind to consult Fouch6. The Allies had always told him that he would not be able to keep his crown on his head without Fouche, but his repugnance to the regicide was too great to allow Louis XVIII. to employ him. When he now sent Blacas, who was every inch a gentleman, or as the King said, " from higher than his head to lower than his feet," to summon Fouche to the Palace, Blacas was as much dismayed as if he had been sent to fetch Satan him- self. It was thought necessary to keep the interview secret, so Fouche was introduced at night, in disguise, 142 THE LIFE OF MARIE AMELIE to the King's apartments. He made the three salutes and then told the King his cause was lost. The whole army had gone over to Bonaparte, and all the lower classes were for him. He said ; " Not a regi- ment will stand by you, and the people en masse will desert you. Your only chance is to place yourself in safety in some strong fortress." Louis XVIII. afterwards said that on hearing these words he felt as if he were assisting at his own funeral. It was resolved to make a last effort to win over the people, and the King summoned the Assembly that Monsieur and the Princes might swear fealty to the Constitutional Charter. The Due d'Orleans went in the same carriage as the King and Monsieur. The poor suffering King tried to appear at ease, and smiled and bowed to the populace en route. But the soldiers, though they cried " Vive le Roi ! " added ** de Rome " under their breath. Monsieur made an affecting speech calling on the Royal Princes, Berry and d'Orleans, to join him in the oath to be faithful to the King and the Charter. The Due d'Orleans appeared much affected and took the oath with noticeable fervour. All these efforts were futile. After the sitting of the Chamber had concluded, Monsieur reviewed the National Guard, but out of 80,000 men only 500 made any pretence of loyalty. Monsieur, who was very indignant, exclaimed: ''Let them behave to Bonaparte as they have to us, and our return is assured". While this review was taking place, Fouche sent 143 THE LIFE OF MARIE AMELIE a message that Bonaparte was at Fontainebleau, and intended to seize all Bourbons as hostages. " Do not imagine you can make a resistance ; save the King and I will save the Monarchy." A council was held in haste at the Palace, and an immediate departure to Lille resolved on, though the Due de Berry remonstrated, saying ; " Do not let us leave without firing a shot, if only to show we are not afraid of powder ". While preparations were being made, the King sent for the Due d'Orleans and inquired what his plans were. " I have no plans," replied the Duke, " but to follow your fortunes. I am of your family, and consequently the enemy of those who attack it. Those who do not want your Majesty, do not want any Bourbon." The King was much pleased at this speech, which was uttered by the Due d'Orleans in a tone of con- viction, and remarked that he was sorry the Duke's mother was unable to leave Paris, and would be at the mercy of Bonaparte. She had had a fall and broken her thigh, and this prevented her travelling. Louis XVIII. says in his Memoirs : " I was uneasy as to the fate of this venerable princess, for whom I had a particular affection, and I was much touched by a letter she wrote me, saying that if her body fell into the hands of Bonaparte, yet her heart would follow me wherever I went. I am sure that at this time her son was sincere and full of good intentions. Having dismissed him, I wished to be alone to rally my courage for the future. What miserable reflec- 144 THE LIFE OF MARIE AMELIE tions crowded through my brain. Must I drop the sceptre after holding it only a year ? At my age, and with my infirmities, must I again begin a wandering life, dependent on others ? Eight days ago every one was ready to die for me. Now the King of France with his armies, fleets, fortresses, magistrates and people are vanquished by one man, who landed as a brigand-chief, and traverses the country, ascending step by step as he goes, till he will arrive in Paris Emperor of the French ! All those whom I had covered with benefits racked their brains for excuses not to follow me. Such is human nature ! It is fool- ish to be astonished, more so to be angry ". When departure had been decided on, the royal party did not seem able to go quick enough ; the King's private papers and his money were left behind. At midnight, by the light of one torch, the King made a painful descent of the stairs, supported by Blacas and Duras, and was hoisted into his carriage with difficulty. To the soldiers and officers of his household, who were profoundly moved and tried to kiss his hands or coat-tails, he said : " Spare me, my children, we shall meet again " ! The Princes followed half an hour later with their retinue. The soldiers who passed them on the road cried " Vive I'Empereur ! " and wore the tricolor cockade. At Lille the troops were disloyal, so the royal party went on to Ghent. After a short time the Due d'Orl^ans went to England, whither he had already sent his family. The Duchesse d'Angoul^me also went to England, 145 10 THE LIFE OF MARIE AMELIE after having made a gallant, but vain attempt, to rally the troops at Bordeaux.^ Though Fouche had accepted the Ministry of Police from Bonaparte, he kept in touch with the Bourbons. He wrote to the King at Ghent : " Bona- parte arrived at Paris to-night amidst enthusiasm, created by the distribution of stimulants. He is changed ; his manner is undecided. The eighty mill- ions you left in the Treasury will pay his first ex- penses, but though he sleeps to-night at the Tuileries, do not despair, you are nearer the throne of France than he is." When Louis XVIII. heard that the Congress at Vienna had declared Bonaparte an outlaw, and that Europe was taking up arms against him, his hopes revived. Several offers to assassinate Bonaparte were made to Louis XVIII. A lady who had the cer- tainty of being able to obtain an interview with him, offered to stab him if the King would promise to provide for her sons. A head cook in Bonaparte's kitchen offered to poison him for the consideration of a million francs. Louis XVIII. was highly in- dignant. " I admit," he writes, " that I should have been glad if Providence had disposed of Bonaparte, but to assassinate him by proxy was an idea I would not entertain even to insure myself twenty thrones." The Constitutional party in France had always looked to the Due d'Orleans as their hope and stay, and after Waterloo it is known that the Allies had serious thoughts of placing him on the throne of ^ The Due d'Angoulome retired to Spain. 146 THE LIFE OF MARIE AMELIE France, for they saw that the elder branch of the House of Bourbon neither would nor could enter into modern ideas, and despaired of their ever suc- ceeding in establishing a stable Government in France. Many Euroi)ean princes were proposed as eligible for the throne of France, and Louis XVIIL ex- claimed indignantly : " I wonder they did not send to China to see if one of the Mandarins had claims, or would be suitable". Eugene Beauharnais had many partisans ; he had been Viceroy of Italy, and made a very favourable impression on the Congress of Vienna. " He is honour personified," was said of him. The Emperor of Russia decidedly favoured the choice of the Due d'Orl^ans, saying he was the only Bourbon who was really liberal minded or who under- stood liberal ideas. England, however, would not consent ; the Regent said it would be " a usurpation ". So Louis XVIII. was recalled. He said : ** I had to lie on the bed, but I did not make it." He always suspected that the Due d'Orl^ans had designs on his throne, and would not consent to his re- turn to France. Other people said : " The Due d'Orleans himself does not belong to the Orleanist faction ". So the d'Orleans family lived on quietly in Eng- land, first at the Star and Garter hotel at Richmond, then at a house at Twickenham, since so well known as Orleans House. The Princess Charlotte, only child of George IV. and heiress-presumptive to the English throne, was living with her husband. Prince Leopold of Saxe-Coburg, at Claremont, and the Duchess of 147 THE LIFE OF MARIE AMELIE York was at Oatlands. They frequently interchanged visits with the d'Orleans family and were on very friendly terms with them. At the baptism of a dausrhter born to the Duchesse d'Orleans at Twicken- ham, a banquet was given at Orleans House, and the Regent with his brothers, the Dukes of Kent and Gloucester, were present. Two years were spent in England before the King gave permission for the d'Orleans family to return to France. Marie Am^He said she would have been happy in England could she have forgotten that she was a wife and mother, and that the house was not her own. Louis XVIII. yielded with great reluctance to the entreaties of the Due d'Orleans' mother, that her son might be allowed to return to France ; to these en- treaties were added the wishes of Comte d'Artois and even of the Duchesse d'Angouleme, who was moved by her love and sympathy for Marie Amelie. "When I signed his recall," he wrote in his Memoirs, " I said to the minister who brought me the document, ' Let this pen be kept ; it will do to use at the abdication of those who persuade me to do this '. M. d'Orleans has the misfortune to please my enemies, and his party are very active. I do him justice in saying that he will not conspire to obtain my throne, but he will not refuse it should it one day be offered to him, with a chance of his being able to retain it." It was not altogether surprising that Louis XVIII. should have these suspicions, for Fouche had told him that it was the Due d'Orleans who would pick 148 THE LIFE OF MARIE AMELIE up the sceptre should it fall from the hand of the King, or of his brother, and that every mistake made by the Government of Louis XVIII. brought the Due d'Orleans a step nearer to the throne. However, permission to return was given, and the Duchesse d'Orleans, her sister-in-law Adelaide, and the little Princes and Princesses arrived at the Palais Royal on 15th April, 1817. The journey from Lon- don had taken eight days. Accompanied by the Due d'Orleans, they went next day to pay their respects to the royal family ; their reception was not gratifying. Luncheon was waiting when they returned to the Palais Royal ; as they seated themselves at the table gloom was on every face, and was only dispersed when a large dish of smoking hot cakes was brought in.^ " Ah 1 " they cried, " Palais Royal cakes ! " and felt at home and on their native soil again, and that life had compensations even for the black looks of royalty ! After his return from Ghent, yielding to the advice of the Duke of Wellington, of Monsieur, and many friends who thought the regicide Fouch^ indispens- able, Louis XVIII. appointed him Minister of Police. Louis had the greatest reluctance to do this, and says in his Memoirs : " No one understood the torture it cost me to be civil to one of my brother's murderers, for so I considered him. I felt humiliated, and blushed even when alone, at the thought of it. I 1 See Memoires de la Comtesse de Boigne. 149 THE LIFE OF MARIE AMELIE stifled my own feelings out of consideration for the public welfare." Soon after his entry into the Ministry of Louis XVIII. , Fouche, who was sixty-three years of age, married one of the heiresses of the House of Castel- lane. The wedding was celebrated with much mag- nificence, and was attended by many representatives of the old French nobility ; at the bottom of the con- tract was the signature of the King, brother of Louis XVIII. Fouche was indeed triumphant ! During the last years of his reign Louis XVIII. was entirely under the influence of Mme. du Cayla. Zoe Victoire Talon was the daughter of an old Parlia- mentary family. She had been educated by Madame Campan at the Institution, which Lamartine called "A school for female diplomats," and had greatly profited by the teaching received there. She was married to Comte du Cayla, a man of ancient descent, attached to the household of the Condes. Comte and Comtesse du Cayla did not suit each other, and separated, but the Comtesse preserved the affection of her mother-in-law, who was attached to the house- hold of the Comtesse de Provence, and who on her deathbed begged the Comte de Provence (Louis XVIII.) to protect her daughter-in-law from her husband, who intended instituting proceedings for restoration of conjugal rights and the custody of children. Thus the acquaintance of Louis XVIII. and Mme. du Cayla began. She made a complete conquest of him, and visited him at Hartwell. After the Restoration their intimacv increased : it was an 150 THE LIFE OF MARIE AMELIE intellectual friendship, and she used her influence to serve a political party, the Extreme right. She was the friend of Mathieu de Montmorency, the Abb6 de Montesquiou and Sosthene de Rochefoucauld. " Monsieur " also approved of her, and told her that she made a noble use of the affection and confidence which his brother, the King, showed to her. By one party she was considered a corrupt intriguer, by the other a pious Esther, friend of the Church and pro- tectress of a good cause. Mme. du Cayla seldom appeared at Court, but used to go to the King's apart- ment for a three hours' Ute-a-tete three days a week. He presented her with a fine estate, St. Ouen, after erecting a splendid chateau on it. He composed an inscription for the foundation-stone of the build- ing, saying that Mme. du Cayla's fine qualities and elevated sentiments made her worthy to be the friend of the King, and that her friendship had been a com- fort and support to him through all his troubles, and in the burden of aSairs of State. This stone was laid in presence of Mme. du Cayla and her brother, Mar^chal Talon, and of Vicomte Sosthene de Roche- foucauld, aide-de-camp of "Monsieur". Although it is anticipating to speak of the death of the King, as a proof of her influence, it has been often quoted that when he lay a-dying, the royal family sent for Mme. du Cayla, and that it was through her persuasions that he was induced to con- fess and receive the last sacraments. But we think that the exertion of such influence could have hardly been necessary. Whatever his 151 THE LIFE OF MARIE AMELIE private opinions may have been, Louis XVIII. v^as too strongly attached to tradition, too well aware of what was the right thing for the deathbed of ''the most Christian king," to have forgone these religious observances. 152 CHAPTER VIIL Life at the Palais Royal — General Admiration felt for Marie Am^lie — The Education of her Sons — The Marriage of the Due de Berry to Marie Amelie's Niece — The Assassination of the Due de Berry — The Birth of the Due de Bordeaux. The Due d'Orleans spent eleven million francs on re- storing the Palais Royal to its former magnificence, and it soon became the centre of society in Paris, men of merit of all ranks and every shade of opinion being welcome there. The Duchesse d'Orleans did not take a prominent part in conversation. She says in her journal : " I listen to what is said in silence, but I make my own reflections ". However, her influence was felt, and one who hated all Bourbons, but admired her eldest son, the Due de Chartres, said ; " He is charming, but it would be impossible for him not to have good man- ners when his mother is the most polished princess in Europe ". Adelaide d'Orleans was a fine musician, and Marie Amelie had talent for painting. When a girl, she had received instruction at Naples from the cele- brated Angelica Kaufmann ; so musicians and artists, as well as scientists, men of letters, politicians and Ministers of State were welcomed at the Palais 153 THE LIFE OF MARIE AMELIE Royal, together with the (^lite of the Court and aristocracy. Sometimes when there was a large assembly in the salon, a bell was heard ; it was the signal for the arrival of the Duchesse d'Angouleme and the Duchesse de Berry, and on hearing it the Dae d'Or- leans would hasten to the top of the staircase to meet them, and escort them to the salon. The Diic de Berry, second son of Comte d'Artois, had married Maria Carolina of the Two Sicilies, niece of the Duchesse d'Orleans. This drew the d'Orleans family into closer intimacy with their royal cousins. Though Louis XVIII. was never friendly, yet Comte d'Artois and his sons and their wives often dined at the Palais Royal. The Duchesse de Berry was an important person at the French Court. The Duchesse d'Angouleme having no children, the young Duchesse de Berry was expected to provide an heir to the throne. She was far from pretty ; her figure was clumsy, she squinted badly, and her features were irregular, but she had that indescribable gift called " charm " ; the moment she spoke her ugliness was forgotten, her manners were unaffected and affable, she was bright, lively and fond of amusement, and refused to submit to the rigorous etiquette of the Tuileries. She brought some brightness into Court circles. As for the Due de Berry he was much older than his wife ; during the long years of his father's exile he had, trying all the Courts of Europe in suc- cession, tried in vain to obtain a wife. He had once applied at Naples for the hand of Marie Am^lie her- 154 The Duchesse p'Angouleme (Madame RoY.iiE) Ti> face II. 154 THE LIFE OF MARIE AMELIE self, whose niece eventually became his wife. It is on record that the King of Sardinia^ spoke of his attempt to obtain his daughter as follows : " From letters received from time to time from Louis XVIII.'^ I perceive he wishes to arrange a marriage between Beatrice and his nephew, the Due de Berry. I always pretend not to understand, for it would be marrying her to hunger and thirst, and turn my daughter into a vagabond, without food or lodging. I think Beatrice would suffer less from poverty, be less ex- posed to bad company, by remaining with me than with Berry, who is not likely to treat her well." The Due de Berry's numerous liaisons were com- mon talk throughout Europe, and it was supposed that he was actually married to an English mistress. Amy Brown. So much so, that when he proposed for the hand of Marie Amelie's niece, the Court of Naples, though willing, now that his position was improved and settled as heir-presumptive to France, to consent to the marriage, it was on condition that the Pope would annul the English marriage.^ Some excuse must be made for the Due de Berry, on account of his miserable position, for many years, as one of the family of a pretender to the French crown, living in enforced idleness in exile. Debarred from entering a profession as a private individual might do, having no outlet for his energies, it was not ^ Then in exile. ^ Uncle of Due de Berry. ^ Vicomte de Reiset, by his researches, has proved that there was no marriage. His work is entitled : Les Enfants du Due de Berry. Pub. Emile Paul, Paris, 1905. 155 THE LIFE OF MARIE AMELIE perhaps surprising that the Due de Berry, who had no intellectual resources, should give way to sensual gratifications, take what compensation he could out of such pleasures as were open to him, in creating for himself a little home in exile. With all his faults, the Due de Berry had some generous qualities, which won the liking and attach- ment of those who knew him well. There is no reason to believe that the young Sicilian Princess was unhappy in her married life. She was on the best of terms with her husband from the first. On her journey to France she received a letter from him, in replying to which she said : " Your letter was very welcome, but written too hastily. The pleasure I had in reading it was spoilt by the difficulty of de- ciphering your writing." In connection with the marriage ceremony, Louis XVIII. relates that, desiring to do honour to his niece, he had a coat made of royal blue, his favourite colour, and adorned with pearl embroidery ; to com- plete the costume he wore velvet shoes, the " Regent " diamond in his hat, and the " Saci " on his sword, and considered himself superbly dressed ; but the compliments he received were of a nature to make him think that his usual plain style of dress was con- sidered more becoming ! There was more depth of character in the Duchesse de Berry than was generally recognised. She retained a very deep affection for her grandmother. Queen Maria Carolina of Naj^les, and often said : " She was a second mother to me, and I shall always regret 156 THE LIFE OF MARIE AMELIE that I could not be with her in her last days at Vienna ". After coming to Paris, the Duchesse de Berry one day entered a drawing-room where she perceived Lord William Bentinck, who had exiled her grand- mother from Sicily. She shuddered, turned pale, and at once left the room. The charities of both the Due and Duchesse de Berry were immense. One bitter cold winter's night she was going to a fete, and said, " I cannot enjoy myself when I think of all the poor are suffering," and summoning her treasurer she ordered him to send 1,000 francs to each of the twelve mayors of the De- partments of Paris, with the command to buy wood and distribute it that very night. Her almoner was the Marquis de Bombelles who had been an ambassador of Louis XVI., a major- general in the army, a priest and canon, and finally Bishop of Amiens and almoner to the Duchesse de Berry. Of this player of many parts it is recorded that being accompanied by his sons ^ to a reception in Paris, on being asked by the groom of the chambers whom to announce — as celibacy was compulsory on the clergy it would hardly have done to announce " the Bishop of Amiens and his sons " — he got out of the difficulty by saying : "Announce the Bishop of Amiens, and the nephews of the Comte de Bombelles " (his brother). One of his sons, Charles de Bombelles, became ^ Who of course were born before he entered the Church. 157 THE LIFE OF MARIE AMELIE first the chamberlain and then the third husband of Marie Louise, Napoleon's widow. One of the Bishop's daughters was lady-in-waiting to the Duchesse de Berry, her mother had held the same position in the household of Mme. Elizabeth. The Duchesse de Berry's first equerry was Comte Charles de Mesnard, a staunch Royalist, who had preferred to earn a living by copying music in London to accepting Napoleon's offer of restoring his confis- cated estates if Comte de Mesnard would enter his service. The Duchesse de Berry was very fond of her aunt, Marie Am61ie, and there was no place where she enjoyed herself more than at the Palais Royal ; she thought Marie Amelie's eldest son the Due de Chartres would be an ideal son-in-law. He, when he heard the cannon announcing the birth of the Duchesse de Berry's first child said : " Either my wife or my king has come into the world." The child was a girl, known as Mile. dArtois. The Duchesse de Berry may be said to have filled at the Court of Louis XVIII. the same position as the Duchess of Burgundy filled at the Court of Louis XIV. She was the rising sun. She was on the best of terms with the Duchesse d'Angouleme as well as the rest of the royal family. The Due de Berry had become unpopular and had received several letters threatening his life. He payed no attention, saying : " If they really meant to kill me they would not warn me of it ". However, on 13th February, 1820, he and the 158 THE LIFE OF MARIE AMELIE Duchess went to the Opera. Between the scenes they went to visit the Due and Duchesse d'Orlcans, who were in a box with their children. M. le Due de Berry caressed the children and played with the young Due de Chartres. The audience applauded this scene, which proved the cordial relations existing between the elder and junior branches of the House of Bourbon. The Duchesse de Berry, not feeling well, left be- fore the opera was over. Her husband had placed her in her carriage and saying " Au revoir, a bientot," was turning back into the theatre, when a man stand- ins near rushed at him and stabbed him to the heart. " This man has killed me," cried the Due de Berry, stag- gering into the hall ; he was afterwards carried to the little room adjoining his box. He asked if the assassin was a stranger, and on being told that he was not, said : " It is cruel fate to die by the hand of a Frenchman. What have I ever done to this man ; I must have offended him unwittingly." The Comte d'Artois told his son that he had never seen or spoken to the man, who could have no grudge against him personally. The Due de Berry said he wished to live till the King arrived that he might ask him to pardon the assassin, and was restless till he had done so. A priest was summoned and he confessed with much piety, and he also told his wife that he would like to see his two daughters, born in England, the children of Amy Brown. The Duchesse de Berry had them brought, and told him she would be their mother. 159 THE LIFE OF MARIE AMELIE She also said to Mile. d'Artois : " They are your sisters, I now have three daughters ". The Duchesse de Berry seemed much concerned about these children, and commended them to the King, who promised to recognise them. Even at such a moment Louis XVIII. could think of the importance of rank and titles, and after a few minutes' consideration said : "I create the eldest Comtesse de Vierzon, and the second Uom- tesse dTssodun.^ It is somewhat pathetic that even on his deathbed the Due de Berry's instinct of the respect and con- sideration due to the King was so strong that he apologised for having disturbed his night's rest ! With his last breath the Due de Berry again asked the King to pardon his assassin. The King evaded the promise. The assassin Louvel, a saddler of Versailles, was brought to trial. He said that con- sidering the Bourbons the worst enemies of France, he chose out the Due de Berry as being the youngest and able to continue the race. Louvel's trial lasted 114 days, so anxious were the authorities to discover accomplices, but they failed to do so. He was con- demned to death and executed in presence of a vast concourse of people, 1st May, 1832. The Due and Duchesse d'Orleans and Mile. Adelaide were present at this deathbed scene ; they had hastened to join the royal party as soon as the news of the attempt on the Due de Berry's life reached them. When all was over Marie Amelie accom- 1 These were the names of the two chief towns in Berry. 160 THE LIFE OF MARIE AMELIE panied her niece to St. Cloud, where she passed the first days of her widowhood, and would not leave her till the first violence of her grief was over, and she had become more calm and resigned. The vicissi- tudes through which Marie Am^lie had passed led to her being astonished at nothing that happened. She early became apt as a consoler, compassionate, sympathetic, experienced ; to her no sort of sorrow or trouble was a novelty. She was looked upon as the guardian angel of the d'Orleans family. If she happened to be ill, despair reigned at the Palais Royal. The husband, the child- ren, the friends, the servants would not stir, and hardly dared look at each other. The Due d'Orleans, usually the most self-controlled of men, completely lost his head, and could not hide his grief even at her bedside. Afterwards, when she had recovered, Marie Amelie said : " I thank God for having allowed me to see how much my husband loves me ". He used to say : " There are no more Amelies ". Two of the tutors of the d'Orleans Princes, Cuvillier Fleury, tutor to Due d'Aumale, and Trog- non,^ tutor to Prince de Joinville, have left letters and journals, from which are to be gathered many details of the daily life of the d'Orleans family, who lived more like wealthy bourgeois than royal Princes. Louis XVIII. accused the Due d'Orleans of popu- larity hunting ; he certainly took part in all liberal movements, and he made a new departure in the education of Princes of the Blood, by entering his ^ He also wrote Life of Marie Amdlie. 161 11 THE LIFE OF MAEIE AMELIE two eldest sons as pupils at the College Henri Quatre. Louis XVIII. greatly disapproved of this step, as derogatory to the dignity of their position, and find- ing that his remonstrances with the Due d'0rl6ans were ineffectual, endeavoured to induce Marie Amelie to exercise her influence, and to dissuade her husband from this step ; but she refused to do so, and wrote the King a long letter, in which she said it was her duty to defer to her husband's wishes, but that on this occasion they coincided with her own conviction that the arrangement would be most beneficial to her sons. Baron Haussmann in his Memoirs says : " During my course at the College Henri Quatre, I was a fellow pupil with M. de Chartres, and we were on friendly terms. He was a good student and often placed among the first ten on the form of honour. His brother, M. de Nemours, entered the College at a later date. The Princes were accompanied by their tutors, who, during the intervals of classes, gave them private instruction in a room reserved for them. They dined at the same table as we did at noon, but their viands were served on silver-plate, and were different to the food of the other pupils. They sat at one end of the table, next to the College Principal. I used to sit next to M. de Chartres ; we did not use his title, simply calling him 'Chartres,' and his brother, * Nemours ' ". It would seem that if a democratic equality was the motive of sending the Princes to a public college, it was a great mistake that they did not share the 162 :^ ^-«c«aiK„ii;i^,3s2c«'J>!f-ji? Ferdinand, Due de Chartres, eldest son of Queen Marie Amelie AND KiXG Louis Philippe. Born at Palermo, 1810 To face p. 162 THE LIFE OF MARIE AMELIE fare of the other pupils. The Due d'Orleans ex- ercised great watchfulness over the education of his sons. Each had a tutor to accompany him to and from college, and superintend the preparation of next day's lessons. Each tutor had to furnish their pupil's father every evening with an account of their charge's conduct, studies, and traits of character observed. From these reports flattery was conspicuously absent. The Due d'Orleans read these reports very carefully, and re- turned them with his remarks to the tutors. M. de Larnac, tutor of the Due de Nemours, disapproved of his pupil taking part in fetes^ receptions, and other " worldly duties " which distracted his attention from his studies. The Due d'Orleans said: "I think that child- hood being the prelude of life, boys should do other things besides study, and should, by mixing in the world, receive ideas. The disadvantages incident to the mode of life our position entails, should not be exaggerated, nor its advantages obscured. I will, on the first opportunity, talk over this matter with M. de Larnac, as I wish to be in accord with my sons' tutors as to the general system of their education." The young princes certainly had no spare time, for besides their college course, they had lessons in English, German, drawing and dancing, and Mgr. Dupanloup gave instructions daily in catechism. M. de Larnac remarks ironically " Sunday was Franconi's day," for on that day the celebrated 163 THE LIFE OF MARIE AMELIE ^ horseman gave riding lessons to the Due de Nemours, who delighted in them, though he was often slack in his other studies. On the 5th February, 1824, M. de Larnac put in his report. "Much indo- cility and impertinence during English lesson. He was deprived of dessert. I read to him the note that Mgr. Due d'Orleans had put on previous day, 'English must go on'. At first he did not understand, but when I threatened to report his ignorance, he hastened to translate the sentence, and then said it was not his fault. It was mine, any- body's except his own," concludes the irate tutor. Later in the month M. de Larnac reports : " It is unfortunate that the Due de Nemours always aggra- vates any fault that he has committed by ridiculous, senseless, or impertinent remarks ". The Due d'Orleans annotated: "Pythagoras said that a wise man turns his tongue round his mouth seven times before speaking. Nemours, who is natur- ally slow to decide, or to answer when addressed, and who often cannot succeed in opening his mouth when he ought to, must be made to understand that he is more blamable than another when he falls into the opposite extreme, and I recommend him to practise the maxim of Pythagoras when he is blamed." The Due de Nemours outgrew his boyish failings and became a very noble character. On the Due d'Orleans' birthday his sons and daughters offered him specimens of their own work as presents. In 1828 we hear of the Due de Nemours presenting the drawing of a head ; Prince de Joinville, 164 Fran(,'Ois Prince de Joinville Born at Neuilly, 1818 To face p. 164 THE LIFE OF MARIE AMELIE a geographical chart ; and the eldest daughter, Princess Louise, the episode of Ugolino translated into French, English and German. The d'0rl6ans family spent a great deal of time at their country, or rather suburban, house at Neuilly. They had seven children ^ at that time, four boys and three girls. The third son, the Prince de Joinville, who was born on 14th August, 1813, at Neuilly, de- scribed it in after life in his Souvenirs. " I cannot," he says, " write the name of Neuilly without emotion, for it is associated with the happiest days of my child- hood. It was a vast chateau, without pretensions to architectural beauty ; all the rooms were on the ground floor on a level with delightful gardens. It was sur- rounded by an immense park stretching from the fortifications of Paris to the Seine. In the grounds were woods, orchards, fields, islands, all within a quarter of an hour from Paris. This fine domain was the favourite residence of my mother and father who created it, and year by year embellished it, and who delighted in their life there surrounded by their numerous children, who they loved so tenderly, and who returned their love so warmly ; it was also our favourite home. We got up at five to have a gallop round the park before going to college. On the Thursday and Saturday half-holidays the whole troup of we children enjoyed ourselves to the full with country pleasures. Sundays and half-holidays were de- voted to recreative pursuits — drawing, music, dancing, 1 Montpensier and Penthi6vre were born later. Two died — Penthievre and a girl who was bom in England. 165 THE LIFE OF MARIE AMELIE fencing and riding. The collegians dined with the boarders, and returned in the evening. The non- collegians and the girls passed the day at their lessons. In the evening pupils and preceptors of both sexes dined together and then went to the drawing-room, where both at the Palais Royal and Neuilly there was generally a good deal of company, for my parents received every evening. On Sundays elders and j uniors all dined together. And this routine went on like clockwork summer and winter." If, for any reason, one or more of the children were separated even for a day or two from their parents by being left at Neuilly, while the parents were at Paris or vice versa, the children wrote daily to their mother, who sent replies. It is in these letters that we find the true Marie Am^lie, enthusiastic, full of energy and wit, not sparing in affectionate phrases and epithets,^ giving her opinion freely on all points, though at the Palais Royal receptions she was very sparing of words, and expressed herself mainly by smiles or gestures, sometimes sad, sometimes gay. This correspondence with her children played an important part in Marie Amelie's life ; her letters to her second son, the Due de Nemours, are particularly intimate and frequent. When he was ten years old, he had been sent to Eu for sea bathing, and his mother wrote : " I am very pleased that you do not fail to write daily ; also with the way you behaved with the Duchesse de Berry, and your efforts to ^ On one occasion she calls Nemours " Cherissima," and repeats this tender expression as many as ten times. 166 Louis Charles, Due de Nemouks Born at Paris, 1814 To _f ace p. 166 THE LIFE OF MARIE AMELIE talk.^ I hope you do not forget to say your prayers night and morning, and to repeat the catechism occasionally. Our duties to God should come first of all, my dear child." The Due de Nemours was the one who responded most of all to his mother's religious teaching. After his death his biographer, the academician, Rene Bazin, said, speaking of his noble life : " To what did he owe his unflinching pursuit of the ideal, his firmness and dignity in all vicissitudes ? To his birth a little, but chiefly to his faith. His royal blood gave him the natural instinct to serve his country ; the Catholic religion prevented his being deceived as to the best means of serving her, or from shrinking from the severity and duration of the service demanded. The Due de Nemours was a believer, and acted up to his belief. He loved the ancient liturgy, the tradition and ritual of his church. He spoke little of his pro- foundest feelings, but he lived them, and they consoled him in the hour of death." When the Due de Nemours was thirteen years old, the King made him colonel of the First Regiment of Chasseurs, henceforth to be known as Chasseurs de Nemours. When he was presented to the regi- ment, his father and elder brother accompanied him on horseback, his mother and sisters were present in carriages. The young Duke had to review his regiment, and his grace in saluting and fine horse- manship were greatly admired. The regiment marched past, at the trot, and then went of to Neuilly, where ^ He was very shy and silent with every one but his own family. 167 THE LIFE OF MARIE AMELIE tents had been pitched for their reception, and an excellent repast was served. In the evening a dinner was given to the officers in the Chateau de Neuilly. The Due de Nemours was too young to command his regiment at present, but he took an interest in the soldiers, and we hear of a corporal in distress coming to beg for assistance, when Nemours emptied his purse into the man's hand, and regretted that there was so little in it, as it was near the end of the month ! The birth, in 1820, of the Duchesse de Berry's posthumous son, the Due de Bordeaux, had been a fatal blow to the hopes of the Due d'Orleans, that the throne of France would ultimately devolve upon his own son ; but he and his family had to attend the grand baptismal ceremony of this little heir to the throne, and Marie Am(3lie went with the Duchesse d'Angouleme in her carriage. The Dowager Duchesse d'Orleans was too ill to be present, and died shortly after. She left the greater part of her wealth to her son, but as a mark of affection for her daughter-in-law, Marie Am(^lie, she left her the Duchy of Aumale for life ; afterwards it was to go back to her husband or sons. Her fourth son bore the title, and inherited the estates sub- sequently. The Due d'Orleans also received another accession of fortune by the death of his aunt, Egalit^'s sister, the Duchesse de Bourbon, and was now the richest prince in Europe. 168 Henri, Due d'Aumale. Born ax Paris^ 1822 To face p. 168 CHAPTER IX. Death of Louis XVIII. — Accession of Charles X. — Favour shown by new King to the Due d'0rl6ans — The Happiest Years of Marie Am^lie's Life — Wealth of the d'Orleans Family — Marie Am6lie'8 Journey to Savoy to Visit her Sister the Queen of Sardinia — Visit of Neapolitan Royal Family to Paris — Splendid F&te at the Palais Eoyal. Some interesting accounts of the life of the d'Orleans family are to be found in the Souvenirs of the Prince de Joinmlle} Though only six years old at the time, he remem- bers going to a Twelfth-Night party at the Tuileries not long before the death of Louis XVIII. He says : " We arrived in the courtyard of the Palace and were saluted by the Swiss Guard at the Pavilion de Mar- san and by the King's Guard at the Pavilion de Flore. We descended from our carriage under the porch of the stone staircase to the deafening rattle of the drums of the Cents Suisse. When half-way up the staircase I was immensely astonished at having to stand aside to let * La Viande du Roi,' as His Majesty's dinner was called, pass. It was carried up from the kitchen to the first floor escorted by his Bodyguard. " The King was wheeled into the salon when the party had assembled, and kissed each of the d'Orleans ^ Published Heinemann, 1905. 169 THE LIFE OF MARIE AMELIE family, but spoke only to Nemours, who was too shy to do anything but stammer. The Twelfth-Night customs were observed, I got the bean from the cake and presented it to the Duchesse d'Angouleme, who was thus Queen of the evening. The King, raising his glass, cried : ' The Queen drinks,' and we all followed his example." A few months later Louis XVIII. was no more. His health was failing throughout the year 1824. The Due and Duchesse d'Orl^ans were present at his deathbed, and in her journal Marie Amelie relates how : " When all was over the Due de Blacas opened the door of the King's room, which adjoined the Gallery of Diana where a large body of courtiers were waiting, and announced * The King ' as Comte d'Artois, now Charles X., entered. At these words the courtiers rushed to surround and congratulate the new King. It was like a torrent ; we were borne along in it, and it was only at the door of the Throne- room that my husband bethought himself that we no longer had aught to do here. We went home reflecting on the foibles of poor human nature and the nothingness of worldly greatness." Louis XVIII. died on 16th August, 1824. His brother and successor, '* Monsieur," was crowned at Rheims on 30th May, 1825. Marie Amelie wrote an account of this splendid ceremony to her son Nemours. " We have just re- turned from the ceremony of the consecration. It lasted three hours. There was some confusion, no one knew what to do. The entrance of the knights 170 v/^'*!'!^ ■1 Charles X (Comte d'Akiois) To face p. 170 THE LIFE OF MARIE AMELIE in procession was very grand. Papa was superb and looked like Louis XIV. The King also was splendid, his air most noble. He has appointed Chartres Colonel of First Hussars. After the " Veni Creator" the Archbishop of Rheims, Monseigneur Latil, ad- vanced towards the King and placed the crown on his head. The Princes then approached the King, crying " Vivat Rex in aeternum ". The cries of " Vive le roi " resounded through the ancient cathedral for quite a quarter of an hour." ^ Another writer tells us that on this occasion the equipages of the d'Orl^ans family surpassed all others, and their splendour was truly royal. The Due d'Or- leans wore his Ducal Crown and ermine and gold cloak. The Duchesse d' Orleans wore a richly em- broidered white dress. We also hear of the magnificent appearance of their sons as Peers of France at the opening of the Chambers, the eldest seated next to the Dauphin on the King's right, and the second next to his father on the King's left. When Charles X. made his State entrance into Paris on the 6th June, the Dues d'Orl^ans and de Bourbon rode in front of him. Charles was now an elderly man, but still retained the fine bearing and chivalrous manners which had won all hearts in his youthful days. Since the death of his mistress, Mme. de Polastron, which occurred while he was in exile ^ After the coronation service the King went to the Hospital of Marcoul and touched 200 scrofulous patients. Making a cross on each brow he said : " May God heal thee. The King touches thee ". 171 THE LIFE OF MAEIE AMELIE in England, his character had completely changed ; he had abandoned altogether the libertine habits of his youth, and earnestly endeavoured to follow out her deathbed injunction to *' live only for God ".^ Mme. de Polastron has been called the La Valli^re of the Kestoration. She had a husband, Comte d'Artois a wife ; setting aside that fact, their union was all that was idyllic. From the moment of his connection with her, his volatile nature seemed com- pletely changed ; he thought of no other woman, and her affection was absolutely disinterested. She sought neither for money nor eclat. Through long years of poverty and exile their mutual affection was unsullied, and ended only with her death. He was ever faithful to her memory, and the permanent change this accomplished in a man of his antecedents and nature, was nothing short of a miracle. Leopold, King of the Belgians, no mean judge of character, gives his opinion of Charles X. in a letter to Queen Victoria, saying : " He was an honest man, a kind friend and honourable master, sincere in his opinions, anxious to do everything that was right ". With all his fine qualities he had not much in- tellectual ability or political sagacity, and his changed views of life led him to put himself too much in the hands of ecclesiastics, who abused their influence over him, in order to increase the power of the Church. Ten years of peace had brought the internal pro- ^Her last words were : " Une grace, Monsieur, Soyez k Dieu, tout k Dieu." "Je le jure," replied Comte d'Artois, falling on his knees at her bedside. 172 THE LIFE OF MARIE AMELIE sperity of France to a high pitch, and the prospects of the new reign opened well. The accession of Charles X. greatly improved the position of the Due d' Orleans.^ Shortly after his accession the King sent for the Duke, and told him that he accorded to him and all his family the title of Royal Highness, which Louis XVIIL had only allowed to Marie Amelie, and this had been a very sore point in the d'Orleans family. At this interview Charles X. said : " I am an old man, and speak as a father to you. There is nothing between you and the throne, but the life of a child of four years old (Due de Bordeaux). A child of that age is not much, and it is necessary that there should be no difficulty about you or your son suc- ceeding in the event of the child's death. Your position is a delicate one. You know I like you, and I believe that you are as loyal and faithful as it is possible to be, but people say all sorts of things about you, so I wish you to be on your guard." The Due d'Orleans thanked the King very warmly for all his goodness, and said : "I only ask one favour : if unfavourable reports reach your Majesty's ears, summon me at once and give me the opportunity of explaining matters, which I should quickly be able to do, for I have no ambition. I am thoroughly satisfied with my position and my life, and I desire ^ One of the first acts of the reign was the passing of the Act of Indemnity, for old proprietors who had been despoiled in the Eevolution. The Due d'Orleans and his sister received an addition of seventeen millions of francs to their fortune. 173 THE LIFE OF MARIE AMELIE only to see the throne assured to your Majesty's line by the prosperity and happiness of France." "I am convinced of it," replied the King, "and I shall do as you have asked me, and you on your side, if you have anything to complain of, come straight to me, let no one come between us ; it is as important for you as for us to be united." The years from this time, up to 1830, were the most peaceful and happiest of Marie Amelie's life. Her domestic happiness was complete, she had all the comforts and pleasures that wealth gives, and an assured and illustrious position. Her husband had great influence and an immense number of friends. He occupied himself with building and improving his estates, and with many works of benevolence for the public benefit, as well as with the education of his sons. Marie Amelie had now only two brothers and one sister, Marie Christine, Queen of Sardinia, living. All the rest of the eighteen children of the Queen of Naples had passed away. These two surviving sisters had not met for fifteen years, but in 1825 Marie Amelie had the great pleasure of going with her husband and three eldest children to visit the King and Queen of Sardinia, at their beautiful old castle at Chambery, the cradle of the House of Savoy. Superbly situated, with a mag- nificent panorama of the Alps to be viewed from its windows, or the pleasant terraces shaded by spreading trees, this picturesque old castle existed in the tenth century. The Due d'Orleans would have called to 174 I "TOTO" AnTOINE, Due DE MONTPENSIER, YoUNGEST SON OF MaKIE AmELIE BoKN AT Neuilly, 1827 To face p. 174 THE LIFE OF MARIE AMELIE mind that it had been the home of two d'Orleans princesses. The first was Fran9oise, daughter of Gaston d'Orleans, uncle of Louis XIV., who married Duke Charles Emmanuel 11. of Savoy ; and the other was Anne d'Orleans, daughter of Louis XIV. 's brother, Philippe due d'Orleans, by Henrietta Stuart. This much beloved Princess, Anne d'Orleans, was married in the old chapel at Chambery, to Victor Amadeus II. of Savoy, of whom Louis XIV., when recommending him to his niece, said that he was not only a great prince, but was a gentleman as well ! This Duke and Duchess became also the first King and Queen of Sardinia, which dominion was given to the Duke of Savoy by the Allies as a reward for his services during the wars of the Spanish Suc- cession. Sicily had been first allotted to him, but the dis- tance from his hereditary domains was too great ta allow of his governing both properly, so he obtained permission to exchange Sicily for Sardinia, which ever after remained in the possession of the House of Savoy with the regal title. The whole country round is rich in memories of the ancestral heroes of the House of Savoy. The most interesting of all, Haut Combe, would have been visited often by the Due and Duchesse d'0rl6ans, for the King of Sardinia was much occupied with his plans for restoring some of its former splendour. The abbey and chapel had been built in the twelfth century by St. Bernard, and had been the burial place of the Duke& of Savoy. Situated amidst splendid scenery, below 175 THE LIFE OF MARIE AMELIE the Dent du Chat and on a rock above the Lac du Bourget, it had been a stately pile filled with treasures of great value. After the death of Louis XVI. the armies of the French Convention had ravaged it, desecrated the royal tombs, broke up the marble statues, the carvings, stained glass and works of art in the chapel, and burnt the valuable manuscripts in the library. Marie Araelie's brother-in-law, Charles Felix, King of Sardinia, wished to restore Haut Combe to as much as possible of its former splendour, and was occupied in repairing the building and beautifying the interior. In all this work he would probably have found a valuable adviser in the Due d'Orleans, who was well versed in history and architecture and loved building. At the present day the chapel con- tains seventeen monuments, reproductions of the original ones, and a profusion of ornamentation and relics, as well as tombs of Carlo Felice and his wife Marie Christine of Naples, side by side, near the altar. We can imagine all the long talks, the questions and answers as to family matters and all that had taken place in the years of their separation, that were enjoyed by Marie Amelie and her sister, while the two husbands were engaged in planning and super- intending the works at Haut Combe. After their return to Paris the d'Orleans family seem to have lived a happy family life at the Palais Koyal and at Neuilly. The newspapers of the day give details of the splendid f^es< given at the Palais Royal, and also of those given by the Duchesse de Berry. At a children's ball given by the latter at the 176 Pbikcesse Clemej^tine d'Orleajsts, Mdlle. de Beaujolais Porn at Neuilly, 1817 To face\j). 17( THE LIFE OF MARIE AMELIE « Tuileries, Marie Amelie's youngest daughter, the Princess Clementine, appeared as a great lady of the Court of Louis XV. The King was enchanted and said : ** I was reminded of the good old times when I saw Mile, de Beaujolais (Clementine) dancing a minuet in such a dignified manner, it was as if my wife had come to life again ". The two elder d'Orleans princesses were also much admired wherever they appeared — the one for her sweet looks and the other for her vivacity and the zest with which she entered into all amusements. The Due de Chartres also had a great success in society ; he was very handsome and waltzed to perfection, but was most dignified in manner. His brother Joinville says of him : " He was a charmer — charmer of soldiers, of artists, of women ". The Paris journals speak of his splendid appear- ance at a fancy ball in the costume of Francis II, , while the Duchesse de Berry as Mary Stuart was " a sight". On this occasion the two eldest d'Orleans princesses appeared as *' Tartaresses " and were loaded with diamonds and jewels. For a few years the relations between the Court and the Palais Royal were most cordial, a sense of security prevailed, and all enjoyed at their ease the good days that seemed to have dawned for France. In May, 1830, the Duchesse de Berry's father, the King of Sicily, Marie Amelie's brother, came to Paris with his second wife who was a Spanish Princess, the Duchesse de Berry's step-mother. Apparently the Sicilian royalties were not pre- 177 12 THE LIFE OF MARIE AMELIE possessing, Cuvillier Fleiiry says : " The Queen was very ugly and made a grimace when we were pre- sented. The King is like a white bear, his face covered with a forest of white hair ; though only fifty he looks seventy." However, the Duchesse d'Orleans was delighted to meet them again, and naturally wished to show due honour to her brother and his wife, and to receive them with all possible splendour in her own Palace ; and she and they must have been sensible of the contrast between her present fine position and that she had been in when they parted, when she had been living with her husband in a precarious position, subsisting on her father's bounty. As the King and Queen were the guests of Charles X., etiquette made it impossible for them to attend any function unless he accompanied them. But the Due d'Orleans now was out of favour with the King ; political troubles were looming in the near distance, and in spite of his desire to think well of his cousin, Charles X. had reason to think that the Duke, and especially his sister, sided with, nay, even aided and abetted malcontents. One day he even said to Marie Amelie and Adelaide d'Orleans, in a tone of great bitterness and with an air of severity : " Nothing is easier than to oppose my Government ; what is not so easy is to justify such opposition ". He was not disposed to do his cousins the " immense favour " of accompanying his royal guests to the Palais Royal. The Duchesse d'Angouleme had 178 ■v',S- • THE LIFE OF MARIE AMELIE great difficulty in persuading him, and was obliged to urge her own and his near relationship to the Duchesse d'Orleans : " The dear Duchess is so good, so excellent, and is of our race and our blood ". At last the King consented, and fixed 13th May for the entertainment. The arrangements made at the Palais Royal were on a scale of great magnificence, but also in the best taste. The decorations, the illuminations, the bril- liance of the ladies' jewels and the richness of their toilettes and of the officers' uniforms, made the splendid apartments, ornamented with fine pictures, works of art, and hung with costly tapestries, like a scene in fairyland. Charles X. and the Neapolitan royalties arrived at eleven o'clock, preceded by outriders, heralded by the beating of drums and escorted by the mag- nificent Bodyguard. First there was a sj^lendid concert, arranged by Mdme. Adelaide, then a ball.^ The King was so fascinated by the grace and distinction of Princess Clementine, that he forgot his ill humour, and said to the Due d'Orleans : '' Were I thirty years younger, your daughter should be Queen of France ". It was a very warm night, and the ladies in decolletee dresses walked in the gardens without shawls. The Prince de Joinville wrote: ''While the King was taking the air on the terrace, I preceded him to clear the way. I admired his upright figure ^Salvandy said: "It i8 a truly Neapolitan fete. We are dancing on a volcano ". 179 THE LIFE OF MARIE AMELIE and truly royal air, as he approached the parapet and saluted the crowd. There was no response." This was the last time a King of France ever visited a Due d'Orleans in his house. The knell of the Legitimate Monarchy had already sounded ; Paris was on the eve of another Revolution. 180 CHAPTER X. Character of Adelaide d'0rl6ans, Sister of Louis Philippe — The Important Part she played in the Eevolution of 1830, and the July Monarchy — Abdication of Charles X. — Character of Louis Philippe — Opinion of Europe — He is declared King of the French. With all his good qualities, Charles X. was quite without the political sagacity and powers of adapta- tion, which had enabled his brother, Louis XVIII., to maintain himself till death, on the unstable throne of France. He, Louis XVIII., was aware of his brother's limitations, and often said, when looking at the little Due de Bordeaux : " Who knows if my brother will succeed in keeping the crown for this child ". France was tired of revolutions and willing to stand a good deal to avoid another. Had Charles X. been true to the Charter,^ he would have been secure on his throne ; but influenced by friends of the old regime, and above all by his religious advis- ers, he took one step after another that aroused the populace to fear for their liberties. Charles X. did not understand that great changes had taken place in the social system of France ; he ^ Charter of the Eights of the People, promulgated and adhered to by Louis XVIII. on his accession. 181 THE LIFE OF MARIE AMELIE ignored the rise to power of the middle classes, and also the fact that though the French people as a whole were attached to religion, they were not to its ministers. He had misunderstood the history of his country, and thought it would be for his own glory and the benefit of his people to re-establish absolute monarchy and the old regime. To have the Catholic religion recognised as the established religion of the State, seemed to him his first duty. Great discontent had been caused by a priest being attached to each regiment, and the regulation that every soldier, Catholic or non-Catholic, must attend Mass. After the opening of the Assembly, March, 1830, when the King in his address spoke of "his rights, of perfidy and culpable measures," the Assembly replied : "That agreement between the political views of the King's Government and the wishes of his people did not exist ". Things went from bad to worse, and in July, 1830, the three fatal Ordinances were promulgated. The first dissolved the newly elected Parliament. The second re-established the Censorship of the Press. The third abrogated the existing electoral law, replacing it by a method of election that made re- presentative government an illusion. The Moniteur of 26th July, 1830, which made these Ordinances known to the public, reached Neuilly in due course. When he read the paper the Due d'Orleans exclaimed : " They are mad " ! ' " They are mad," he repeated several times. "They will get 182 ■:^ Madame Adelaide^ Sister of Louis Philippe To face p. 182 THE LIFE OF MARIE AMELIE themselves exiled again ! As for myself I have been exiled twice and have had enough of it ! I shall stay in France." It would be impossible to understand the sub- sequent course of events and the part played by the Due d'Orleans without some account of his sister, Mdme. Adelaide, and the preponderating influence she exercised over her brother, and in the family councils. Educated in liberal ideas by Mme. de Genlis, Adelaide d'Orleans had made them her own. Long years of exile in a convent at Bremgarten, and after- wards with her aunt Mme. de Conti in Bavaria and Hungary, had separated her from family life. She knew little of her mother, and was subsequently altogether estranged from her, on account of the latter's subjugation by her chancellor, M. de Folmont. After their return to France she concentrated all her affection on her brother and his family. Her niece, the Queen of the Belgians, in a letter to Queen Victoria, says : " My good, excellent, beloved aunt lived only for her brother. Her devotion was absolute, and utterly unselfish. A heart so true, so noble, so loving is seldom found. She was a second mother to us, indeed few mothers do for their children all she did for us or love them better, and we in re- turn loved and looked up to her." Mme. de Boigne says : " In Madame - Adelaide I always admired her extreme goodness of heart and ^ Eeferring to the King and his advisers. ^ After Charles X. had made her brother Royal Highness she was always addressed as " Madame ". 183 THE LIFE OF MARIE AMELIE great intellectual powers. Her good qualities were her own, her defects due to circumstances in which she was placed in youth." She was frank and sincere, and with her the inside was worth more than the surface. Exclusive in her affections, she was a firm friend but a bitter enemy. Her charities, however, left out no one. She gave away one-sixth of her income in pensions to poor artists and men of letters, to the widows and orphans of combatants in the July Revolution, and in subscriptions to schools and hospitals, for the families of shipwrecked mariners, or artisans out of work, for cholera patients ; pensions also to faithful servants of the House of Orleans, and rendered assistance even to poor Jews. Her wealth and liberality gave her much influence, and she lived only for the aggrandisement of her brother and his family. Her father, Philippe Egalite had been kindness itself to her. She was too young to judge the facts and would not acknowledge that his path had been one of crime. In her days of exile and among the emigres who formed her aunt, Mme. de Conti's Court, she found herself everywhere looked upon coldly on account of the name she bore, so she was driven in upon herself and raised a rampart of reserve in self- defence. Her mother's household being unendurable, she left it and joined her brother, and having no one else on whom to lavish her capacity for affection, she gave her heart wholly to him. 184 THE LIFE OF MARIE AMELIE He returned her affection, fell much under her influence, consulted her on all points, and having great respect for her powers of mind, deferred to her opinions. Their father's life and death was a bond of inti- macy between them. Though both were generally the easiest of com- panions, upon this point they were irritable, even to rancour. After the Restoration neither of them was ever at ease with Louis XVIIL, and least of all with the Duchesse dAngouleme, daughter of Louis XVI., for whose death their father had voted. ^ Madame Adelaide indeed frankly detested the royal family. She may have remembered that in her youth she had been taught to look on the Due d'Angouleme as her future husband, but the match fell through on account of the determined opposition of Marie An- toinette. Again in later life there had been an idea of marrying her to the Due de Berry, which also col- lapsed.^ Besides all this she was thoroughly at variance with the policy and opinions of the elder branch of the Bourbons ; she despised their narrowness and bigotry, " they had learned nothing, and forgotten nothing ". She herself was genuinely liberal and modern in her ideas, and she thought a constitutional Monarchy and representative Government was really what was needed for the welfare of France, and she loved her country only less than her brother. For him she was ^ Memoirs of Mme. de Boigne. 2 Mme. Koyale refused to admit her into the family as a sister. 185 THE LIFE OF MARIE AMELIE always ambitious. If he was not of the Orleanist fac- tion, Mdme. Adelaide certainly was; in and out of season she never lost sight of the ruling desire of her life, i.e., to see her brother on the throne of France. Her wealth gave her great influence. She spent it generously, patronised artists and literary men, and employed much labour on her estates, especially at Kandau, which was her favourite residence ; a whole countryside benefited by her benevolence and adored her, calling her " the good Mademoiselle ". Her position should have been secondary, but her abilities always forced her to the front. No one had a better head for business. She could discern instantly the critical point in a difficulty and sweep away all side issues ; she refused to be led astray, and pinned the interlocutor down to the point at stake. She was statesmanlike in all her views, and she gathered around her in her apartments at the Palais Koyal all who she thought might serve her purpose. Talleyrand was her intimate friend and counsellor ; all the Opposition deputies frequented her salon, and openly criticised the Government and were under her influence ; by her money she supported all liberal in- stitutions and newspapers, and welcomed all politicians of the popular party, who were dissatisfied with the Government. Mdme. Adelaide had one quality which her brother lacked, i.e., decision of character. She knew what she aimed at, and stuck at nothing to obtain it. Louis Philippe protested loyalty to the King, but he smiled with significance and sympathy at the 186 THE LIFE OF MARIE AMELIE Opposition. With all his distinguished abilities he had that indecision of character which led him to listen to his sister against his own better judgment, and finally brought about his downfall. Lamartine sums up his character as follows : " Although a Prince of the Blood, he was a Revolutionary by in- heritance. Nature had made him honest and mod- erate, exile and experience made him prudent. The difficulties of his position as a democrat among princes, and a prince among democrats, made him bow to circumstances, and temporise with fortune. He seemed to foresee that a throne was his destiny. In the meanwhile he led an irreproachable life of domestic happiness. He certainly, though sympa- thetic with the Opposition, was guilty of no criminal complicity. He was studious and reflective, pro- foundly versed in history, a thorough diplomat, a fluent orator, a model husband and father, kind, humane, peaceably inclined ; born brave, but having a horror of blood, he was endowed with all the qualities that make a King beloved and popular, except one, i.e., greatness. This he replaced by the secondary quality of cleverness." There were three parties in France ; the Republican, which had no capable leader ; the Legitimists, who adored the elder branch of the Bourbons and detested the younger branch, as the incarnation of Divine right ; finally, the Liberal Constitutional party, which was composed of an immense majority of the nation. This party saw in the Due d'Orl^ans a medium between Royalty and a Republic, the last hope of the 187 THE LIFE OF MARIE AMELIE Monarchy. Mdme. Adelaide understood the position ; she had made up her mind, and after the news of the popular tumult that followed the publishing of the Ordinances, she urged her brother to go and place himself at the head of the Opposition. She knew that what had to be done was to persuade her brother to take a definite step, and to use her in- fluence to outweigh the scruples and objections of Marie Amelie, truly attached to the royal family. The quiet, regular family life at Neuilly was suddenly broken up, the salon became the resort of politicians from Paris. The Duchesse d'Orl^ans was sad and dejected, spoke little, but prayed much. The days passed in anxiety and uncertainty ; contradictory rumours kept coming in. At last on the third day booming of cannon and the tocsin, sounding from Notre Dame, reached Neuilly. Every one abused Mgr. Que'len, who had in- fluenced the King to sign the Ordinances. Next day news came that troops had fraternised with insur- gents, and that the mob occupied the Louvre and Tuileries. Rumours came that the Royalists were going to seize the Due d'0rl6ans, so he went off* to Raincy. The Princes and Princesses were sent away to Villiers Coterets. Mdme. Adelaide and the Duchesse remained at Neuilly to send news to the Due d'Orleans. In the course of the day Thiers and others arrived, and told Marie Amelie that their party wished the Due d'Or- leans to assume the reins of Government. She was greatly agitated, and said : " But my husband is an 188 THE L IFE OF MARIE AMELIE honest man ! He will do nothing against the King ! " and turning to M. Sheffer, one of the deputation, who was an habitue of the Palais Royal, she said : " How could vou undertake such a mission ? I can under- stand that M. Thiers should venture to do so, because he does not know us well, but you do, and that i/ou should think us capable of it ! We can never forgive you ! Our gratitude to the King, who delivered us from poverty and restored our estates, and has shown us every possible favour, would prevent my husband entertaining such an idea." Mdme. Adelaide, however, had no scruples, and said : " My brother loves his country, and I think he will do anything in his power to deliver it from anarchy. Let them make him a president, anything but an exile." Thiers turned to her and said : " Madame, you have given the crown to your family". All writers agree that without the influence of his sister, Louis Philippe would never have made up his mind to accept the crown. ^ After Thiers had gone, many other visitors came to Neuilly, bent on the same errand ; to all the Duchesse d'OrMans, who seemed in the depth of woe, returned the same reply : " My husband cannot do it. He is an honourable man.^ He will be faith- ful to his oath ". But Mdme. Adelaide said : " Let the Chamber of Deputies speak out ; then if my 1 It was remarked that at the sitting of the Chamber his de- meanour was most undecided. 2 " Honnete homme." 189 THE LIFE OF MARIE AMELIE brother hesitates, / shall go to Paris, and promise in his name to the people on the Place du Palais Royal ." Next evening the result of the sitting of the Chamber was known. The Due d'Orleans was sum- moned to Paris, and next morning his proclamation as Lieutenant-general was on all the walls of the city. The Duchesse de Berry had always been popular ; when the dynasty was attacked in the papers she was always spared. The royal children were charming, and their mother was justly proud of them ; she thought she had nothing to do but to appear with a child on each side to appease any insurrection. Not long before these troubled times, on hearing that the d'Orldans family were going to Eu, the Duchesse de Berry thought it might be agreeable to them to stay at her house in Dieppe for a few days. She could not go herself, but it was decided that her little daughter. Mile. d'Artois, was to do the hon- ours. The child was delighted, and made out her programme : " Reception by Mayor with an address, young girls dressed in white to present baskets of flowers to the d'Orleans ladies, gala dinner and fete champetre ". She was disconcerted to find there was not enough plate, linen and china at her mother s house to enable her to carry out her plans, so she consulted the King. He approved of her programme and gave orders for the necessary supplies to be sent. Mile. dArtois then wrote her invitation and the Duchesse d'Orleans replied : " Never forget, Louis, that your aunt can never refuse you anything you may ask. Expect me, and your cousins, at Dieppe very shortly." 190 THE LIFE OF MARIE AMELIE The remembrance of this letter must have come back to both parties, when shortly afterwards the affection of Marie Amelie was put to the test. Charles X. would not believe in a revolt. In vain the Duchesse de Goutaut ^ begged him to ascend the tower at St. Cloud and look through a telescope, when he would have seen into the Rue de Rivoli, where men and women were throwing pianos, furniture and all kinds of projectiles on the heads of the soldiers below. Although the sound of the tocsin and of cannon- ading reached St. Cloud, Charles X. thought it be- hoved his dignity to remain calm and unmoved, so nothing was changed of the usual routine, and he played whist as usual at night. Next morning the commandant of the Cents Suisses told the King it was impossible to maintain the Polignac Ministry ; he replied : " You are young and I am experienced ". He forbade the Due d'An- gouleme to go to Paris and use force to quell the in- surrection ; and the Duke, usually so calm, was almost mad with exasperation at enforced inaction, and what he considered the degradation of the Crown. At last the King was made to see that his life was in danger and agreed to retire to Rambouillet. The Duchesse de Berry wore her riding habit when they left St. Cloud, and two revolvers in her belt, with which, as she said, to defend the lives of her children if necessary. On the way Charles X. stopped at Trianon. What memories of past days must have come to him, of the ^ Governess of the Duchesse de Berry's children. 191 THE LIFE OF MARIE AMELIE days when it was Marie Antoinette's pleasure house, and of the many festivities in which he had taken part there when he was young and careless. When the royal party arrived at E-ambouillet they were not expected. Mme. de Goutaut ransacked kitchen and pantries, hoping to find something for her hungry young charges, but nothing was to be found but a crust of bread, which she gave to Mile. d'Artois, who broke it in half and said to her governess : " Take half — even if it is my last crust I must share it with you ". Next day the King was told that the mob of Paris were marching on Rambouillet. There were only 15,000 of them, and they were without arms — a motley crew, some on foot, some in cabs and omni- buses. The King's forces at Rambouillet amounted to 8,000 men, and he had forty-two cannon ; the mob could easily have been dispersed ; but the King was misinformed and told that his assailants amounted to 60,000 in number, and that resistance was impossible. Under this impression he signed his abdication in favour of the Due de Bordeaux, and appointed the Due d'Orleans, Lieut. -general of the Kingdom. At the time he felt no doubt that the Due d'Or- leans would be as loyal to the little Due de Bordeaux, as his ancestor the Regent d'Orleans had been to the child Louis XV. Later on, when Louis Philippe appointed Odilon Barrot to escort Charles X. to the coast, he deplored the fate which made him apparently the instrument 192 THE LIFE OF MARIE AMELIE of sending into exile one who had loaded him with benefits and whom he sincerely loved. When Charles X. wrote to appoint Due d'Orleans Lieut.-general of the Kingdom, he had been previously appointed by the Chamber. He was fighting against exile and loss of fortune for himself and his family, which he was determined to avoid at any cost. It is impossible here to enter into all details of the July Revolution, how the Due d'Orleans desired as Lieut.-general of the Kingdom to act as regent for the little Due de Bordeaux, in whose favour Charles X. had abdicated, how this project fell through, how the crown was offered to the Due d'Orleans on condition of his ac- cepting a Constitution, and how he did finally accept it. Marie Am^lie's heart was torn asunder between her wish to believe her husband in the right and her real affection for the royal family, and she was greatly distressed to receive a note from the Duchesse de Berry's little daughter, saying they counted on Marie Amelie's using her influence for the little Due de Bor- deaux, the writer's little brother. But it was too late, and Marie Amelie remained in her bed-chamber sobbing, and saying repeatedly : " What a catastrophe. They will call my husband a usurper ! " When the news was brought to the young princes and princesses at Villiers Coterets, it was not welcome. They were sitting at table. The princesses burst into tears, buried their faces in their handkerchiefs, and got up and left the room in despair. 193 13 THE LIFE OF MARIE AMELIE The general verdict is that Louis Philippe was a usurper, and that he had always aimed at the crown. He himself denied it, so did his sons.^ The situation is well summed up by the distin- guished academician, Rene Bazin, who says: "Facts prove that the Due d'Orleans did not seek power ; he accepted it in order that France should not become a Republic, or fall into anarchy ". The Russian ambassador said : " When the city was heaped with dead bodies, the Due d'Orleans appeared amidst the confusion of parties, and acted as necessity obliged him to ". The Due de Chartres said : " My father used to say that the people of France were so tired of revolutions that they would forgive Charles X. any- thing except the violation of the Charter. He was really attached to the King, and never anticipated that he could be so blind as to commit political suicide, as he subsequently did. My father hoped for the stability of King Charles's Government, de- siring this the more on account of his own repug- nance to the throne, which he saw must devolve on him in the event of a revolution. My mother, who was united to the Duchesse de Berry and Madame Royale, not only by ties of close relationship, but by mutual deep affection, desired even more ardently the continuance of the sovereignty of the elder branch, and had done her best to persuade me to 1 The Prince de JoinvUle wrote : " I know with absolute cer- tainty that my father did not desire the crown ". 194 THE LIFE OF MARIE AMELIE consent to a marriage with the daughter of the Duchesse de Berry." After accepting the Lieutenant-generalship, the Due d'Orleans himself said to Chateaubriand that nothing but a stern sense of duty and patriotism had impelled him to take any part in politics, and that he desired nothing better, after having re-established order, than to return to the peaceful existence from which he had emerged. This is what he would naturally feel. He had wealth, great estates, a splendid position. By active benevolence he served his country in many ways, and the management of his estates and the building up of fortunes for his family gave him occupation. He was fifty-six years old, thoroughly happy in his domestic life. What had he to gain ? Why should he wish to risk this solid happiness in order to balance himself for a while on the unstable throne of France ? In his own lifetime he had seen one king be- headed, and the fall of an emperor (Napoleon). He had seen Louis XVIII. compelled to fly at Napoleon's return, then the second fall of Napoleon, the re- installation of Louis XVIII. and the abdication of his successor. What had he to gain by the acceptance of a crown dependent on the caprice of a people who had beheaded his father, once their idol, and of an army, who, while accepting the bounty of Louis XVIII., and carousing at his expense, could say : " Louis XVIII. is a good sort of man, but give us the little Corporal," and went over to Napoleon as soon 195 THE LIFE OF MARIE AMELIE as he appeared. Marie Amelie also had had personal experience of the vicissitudes to which kings and queens were exposed in the early part of the nine- teenth century. Her youth having been passed amidst revolutions — twice she had accompanied her parents in their flight from their kingdom — she re- membered her mother's death in exile, her father's abdication, and knew that her brother was only main- tained in his kingdom by a foreign army. When it was necessary for the Duchesse d'Orleans to leave Neuilly to join her husband in Paris, it was proposed that she and her sons and daughters should make their entry in state, in open carriages. But she refused, saying : " No ! No ! it would be repugnant to me, it would have an air of triumph, as if I were triumphing over my own relations". So they went quietly, part of the way in a public omnibus, partly on foot, on account of the barricades. When they arrived at the Palais Royal late at night, it was all lighted up, all the doors were open, in all the rooms people were eating, and all sorts of dis- reputable-looking people had already settled them- selves to sleep on the steps of the great staircase. The appearance of the Duchesse d'Orleans excited general comment. Her face was drawn, her eyes red with weeping, her usual quiet dignity quite upset. Next day the Palais Royal was like a fair, open to all the world. Deputations were constantly arriv- ing ; men, women, and children of the mob forced their way into the presence of the d'Orleans family, 196 THE LIFE OF MARIE AMELIE who had to embrace them on the balcony in the face of the crowds assembled outside the windows. How distasteful all this must have been to " the greatest great lady in Europe," ^ can well be imagined. The hospitals were full of those who had been wounded during the insurrection, and Marie Amelie and Mdme. Adelaide visited them assiduously. Misery and poverty were widespread, and Marie Amelie realised some of her private fortune in order to have means to help the distressed. After the crown had been offered to the Due d'Orleans, a dispute arose as to the conditions of the new Monarchy, and the title he was to assume. Finally it was decided that he was not to be declared " King of France by the Grace of God," but *' King of the French, by the Will of the People ". A significant principle was involved in these words. The 7th August, 1830, was the day appointed for the recognition of the Due d'Orleans as King of the French. There was to be no solemn ceremony, such as he had assisted at when Charles X. was crowned ; it was to be only the signature of a contract between him and the nation. Accompanied by his whole family he repaired to the Chamber of Deputies, where a throne, draped with tricolor flags, had been erected. The Princesses took seats in the Tribunes. The Due d'Orleans with a son on each side of him took seats in front of the Throne. The peers and deputies 1 Talleyrand's description of Marie Amelie. 197 THE LIFE OF MARIE AMELIE had risen at his entrance. Casimir Perier read aloud the Declaration of the Chamber of Peers containing the provisions of the new Constitution, and Pasquier that of the Chamber of Deputies. The Due d'Orleans signed both Declarations and then took his seat on the Throne. The heralds proclaimed him ** Louis Philippe I., King of the French ". There were some cries of "Vive le Roi," but the ceremony was a very tame one. As for Marie Amelie there was never any public recognition or official assumption of her royal dignity, though of course she was always hereafter addressed as Queen, and there was never but one opinion about her, and that is, that she was worthy of the rank, and adorned the position. After having signed the Declaration the King left the Chamber, shaking hands with the National Guard as he passed out. Then he mounted his horse, and accompanied by his sons rode back to the Tuileries. Marie Amelie's great affection for her husband, and her life -long conviction that he could do no wrong, gradually reconciled her to the position, and she said : " Since by God's will this Crown of Thorns has been placed on our heads, we must accept it and the duties it entails ". But if any one congratulated her on her husband's accession, she always replied: "I cannot see any advantages, I see only that I have lost my peaceful home life and sheltered position, and I tremble for the uncertain future of my family ". Louis Philippe also always said : "Not congratu- 198 THE LIFE OF MARIE AMELIE lations but condolences are what should be offered to us". Meanwhile Charles X. and the old royal family were slowly making their way to exile. The old King was seventy-three, and throughout their journey to the coast, he and the royal party were received with every mark of sympathy and respect. The first place they stopped at after leaving Ram- bouillet was the Castle of Maintenon. The King had sent to ask the Due de Noailles to receive him, and on their arrival at 2 A.M., the royal party found the chateau illuminated as if for a,/^te. Their host was Due Paul de ISoailles, author of the Life of Mme. de Maintenon. From Mme. de Maintenon's niece and heiress, who married the Due de Noailles of her day, he had inherited the estate of Maintenon. The royal party and their hosts assembled in the room which had been the bed- room of Louis XIV., and Charles X. slept in Mme. de Maintenon's room. In the morning he attended Mass in the little chapel, which has remained un- changed since the sixteenth century. The Duchesse de Berry was the only one of the party in sufficiently good spirits to do justice to the splendid collation provided for them. The remembrance of this visit of Charles X. is still cherished at Maintenon. The present owner was then only four years old. In the room the King slept in a plaque has been placed with the inscription : " His Majesty Charles X. here passed the night of 3rd and 4th August, 1830 ". Above it is a picture of the sove- 199 THE LIFE OF MARIE AMELIE reign, the last of the elder branch of the Bourbons, in the mantle and collar of the Order of the Holy Ghost. Next day the royal party continued their journey and went by slow stages to Cherbourg. At Argentan they heard that Louis Philippe had accepted the crown, and Charles X. must have remembered with some bitterness that when warned against the Due d'Orleans he had replied: "I thoroughly trust my cousin, if he takes the crown you may say Charles X. was an old fool ". The royal party embarked at Cherbourg. The ladies, the Duchesses d'Angouleme and Berry, quite broke down when bidding good-bye to the officers who had attended them. The King ascended the bridge, and as the vessel moved away from the shores of France he raised his hat, and with a noble and dignified salute bade an eternal farewell to his country. The sea was calm and the rays of the set- ting sun illumined the dignified and venerable figure of Charles X. which was defined against the horizon, a dramatic and touching sight, that dwelt long in the memory of those who witnessed it. 200 CHAPTEK XI. Disturbances and Insurrections — Life of Marie Am61ie and Louis Philippe as King and Queen of the French — King's Motives for Accepting Crown — Public Opinion on Marie Am61ie — Her Eeluctance to Accept Crown — The Duchesse de Berry's Attempt to Eaise an Insurrection in Favour of her Son — Her Imprisonment at Blaye. The life of the King and Queen of the French at the Palais Royal was much less dignified than that of the Due and Duchesse d'Orleans had been. They were now obliged to cringe to the mob, who walked in and out of their apartments at will, and treated the family with insolent familiarity.^ Open house was kept, and three times a week sixty to eighty guests, drawn from all sorts and conditions of men, dined at the King's table. Louis Philippe affected a bourgeois style of dress, and a bourgeois " hail fellow well met " sort of manner. He seldom wore uniform. His usual costume was nankeen trousers, blue coat with gold buttons, a vast white waistcoat and a grey hat ; he usually ^ Prince de Joinville relates that the elders among his fellow collegians used to cuff him and say: "Now then, young Royalty, do this or that ". 201 THE LIFE OF MARIE AMELIE walked about carrying an umbrella, which the cari- caturists made use of. Although he had become very stout he still retained an air of youth on account of his alert movements and brisk, business-like manner. People treated the Queen in a manner very different to that in which they treated the King. Her innate high breeding and dignity compelled respect. A Republican general remarked : " I am quite at ease with the King, and speak to him as if he were my equal ; but the Queen makes me feel shy. When I have to answer her I do not know what to say, and I stammer and look like a fool." Louis Philippe always said he had only accepted the crown in order to save the country from anarchy, and maintain order, but a long time elapsed before he succeeded in accomplishing that. Paris was in a state of turmoil. The churches were closed, and it was not safe for the clergy to appear in the streets. The Archbishop was in hiding. In October, 1830, a howling, drunken mob sur- rounded the Palais Royal, demanding the lives of the late King's Ministers.^ Troops were called out to disperse them ; they then went to Vincennes, where the Ministers were imprisoned. They did not get there till midnight, and the Governor of the Castle, General Daumesnil, who had lost a leg in Napoleon's wars, came out alone to the gate to meet them. ^ Louis Philippe, against his will, had been obliged to imprison and bring them to trial, but managed to get a law passed abolish- ing capital punishment for political offences, and thus saved their hves. 202 THE LIFE OF MARIE AMELIE " What do you want ? " "The former Ministers, who composed the Or- dinances." " You will not have them. They are entrusted to my charge, and will not leave this place till they go before the judges." "The people are the judges. Death to the Minis- ters ! " " You shall not have them. Sooner than give up to you these men who have been committed to my care, I swear that I will set fire to the powder magazine, and you and I, and the Ministers will all die together." The mob was checked ; their anger turned to admiration ; they cheered " old wooden-leg " and went back to Paris, but they went straight to the Palais Royal, and awoke the King and Queen, entered the halls and streamed up the staircase, till driven back by the Guard. On this occasion Mdme. Adelaide showed a gallant spirit. When Marshal Gerard remarked that it would be difficult to save the Ministers, she replied : " Well, Monsieur, then we will all perish in the attempt". For a long time it was necessary to have troops encamped throughout the city to keep the populace down. In February, 1831, there was a worse riot when a Mass was being said in memory of the Due de Berry. The mob sacked the church, dressed them- selves in the ecclesiastical robes, and thus attired danced the Carmagnole through the streets- This 203 THE LIFE OF MARIE AMELIE riot lasted three clays, and the scenes enacted re- minded every one of the days of the Terror. A while later the mob forced their way into the Palais Royal, when the King and Queen and Lord Granville, and other distinguished guests were at dinner. A ruffian with a long knife made at the King, whose life was only saved by the action of the Due d'Orleans, who sprang upon the fellow and dragged him out. Soon after this the royal family took up their abode at the Tuileries. The King had a deep moat dug under the windows, fenced by an iron balustrade, saying : " I do not intend my wife's ears to be pol- luted with all the horrors Marie Antoinette had to endure when the people had the entrance to the gardens, and could come close to the windows". The Queen wrote to her son, the Due de Nemours, who was absent at the time : " We are well, but sadder than ever in this ill-fated Palace. Yesterday we received the Corps Diplomatique in the Throne- room. There were a great many of them, and they seemed very pleased to find themselves again in their old Salon des Ambassadeurs ; I wish them joy of it." The Revolutionary movements which permeated all the countries of Europe — starting from Paris and its secret societies in which Republicans, Bonapartists and Legitimists were plotting in their several ways — necessitated the creation of a new staff of Secret Police (Cabinet Noir), on the accession of Louis Philippe. Francois Raspail, President of the Society of the 204 THE LIFE OF MAMIE AMELIE Friends of the People, was a chemist, a physiologist and artilleryman, and had played an important part in overthrowing Charles X. Under Louis Philippe he fulminated in the pages of the Tribune against the Government and the King who, he said, " was none of his choosing ". His articles were eagerly read. Louis Philippe was disturbed and alarmed, and said to Montalivet, then Minister of the Interior, *' Good God ! What does the man want ? " " Sire," replied Montalivet, '' probably, like all the other heroes of July, he wants the Cross of the Legion of Honour." " Then give it to him," cried the King, *' and let me have peace ! " On the morrow Raspail, Friend of the People, head of a Secret Society, and proprietor of the Tri- buney received a bulky official document. Supposing it to be a summons, he threw it on his desk and pre- pared for imprisonment. After a while he opened it, and words could not express the amazement with which he read as follows : — " Monsieur. I have the honour to announce to you that by ordinance under date March 13th, 1831, His Majesty the King has appointed you Chevalier of the Legion of Honour. The Grand Chancellor of the Order will at once send you a duplicate of this an- nouncement of your appointment. "(Signed) Montalivet." Open-mouthed, Raspail looked again at the docu- 205 THE LIFE OF MARIE AMELIE ment, to see if the date was not 1st April instead of 13th March. The Republican, expecting chains, received the Cross of Honour. He immediately wrote a refusal and sent a copy- to all the Opposition newspapers, as well as to Monta- livet. But between Raspail's reception of the official announcement and his reply to it, a ministerial crisis intervened, and Casimir Perier succeeded Montalivet. When the refusal of the Friend of the People ap- peared in the newspapers, Casimir Perier observed : " Very Good ! Let Raspail choose : the Cross of the Legion of Honour or prison ! " Three days later the official announcement of his appointment appeared in the Moniteur. Raspail was furious, and went to the office of the Moniteur to insist on the insertion of his refusal. The editor replied blandly that his paper could not thus insult the noble institution of the Legion of Honour. On returning home he found a courteous letter from the Prefect of the Seine, saying he would have the honour of receiving M. Raspail as Chevalier of the Legion of Honour, on the following Friday. This was maddening. This excess of official graciousness was degenerating into sarcasm ! On his way to the Hotel de Ville to inform the Prefect in person that he would not be thus received, Raspail met a congratulatory deputation of the Dames de la Halle, who flung themselves and a huge bouquet 206 THE LIFE OF MAKIE AMELIE into the arms of the new knight. But even this was not the worst. He who despised priests as much as he did the Legion of Honour, received a charming letter from Bishop Gringoire, Commander of the Order, claiming the right to be first in congratulating him on his new appointment. A Bishop congratulating Kaspail ! This was worse than imprisonment. But Casimir Perier was not the man to give way any more than was Raspail himself. " Cross or prison," said the Minister. If Kaspail would not accept the decoration he should be punished for refusing to serve in the ar- tillery, after he had received orders to prevent the assemblings of mobs, and for writings calculated to disturb social order. At his examination he boasted of his power and influence, and avowed the truth of all that he was accused of. He had signed his declaration and was leaving, when the judge said to him : " Is it not true that because you belong to a Secret Society you have been obliged to refuse the Cross of the Legion of Honour ? " " Monsieur, I refuse to compromise others," said Raspail, but he departed less proud of himself and his vaunted liberty than he had been a few minutes earlier, for it is a fact that members of Secret Societies have less independence than other men. They are compelled to obey, without remonstrance, an inflexible command. 207 THE LIFE OF MARIE AMELIE They resemble men who, having broken the bonds of marriage, become slaves to an exacting mistress. Louis Philippe, in spite of his bourgeois air of simplicity and conciliatory policy, w^as soon found to be inexorable in maintaining his authority and resist- ing any attempts at diminution of his powers. To outward ceremony and the trappings of his rank, he was indifferent. But if he did not reign he governed. By degrees the people found they had given them- selves a master. On one occasion a provincial president who was deputed to make an address to the King, who had come to Evereux for a public function, took the op- portunity of adding some impertinent remarks, on the plea "that it was good for Kings to hear the truth ". Louis Philippe replied : " Yes, doubtless, M. le President, Kings must hear the truth, but so also should the nation. To-day the people have their flatterers as in old days Kings had, and these flatterers know how to mutilate truth, as well as how to check it by calumny. Time and the common sense of the people will at last show them their real interests, but it is only by repressing passion and partiality that they can succeed in forming a sound judgment." There continued to be insurrections from time to time but they were put down. The King's life was constantly attempted, but that did not deter him from appearing in public. His courage never failed ; if told of an intended attempt on his life, that never pre- vented his keeping an engagement ; he only remarked : ^' It seems there is no close time for hunting me ". 208 THE LIFE OF MARIE AMELIE It has always been thought that Louis Philippe was something of a free thinker, but from youth upwards he had been trained in religious observances. An entry in the journal which he kept as a young man records frequent attendance at Mass, and in one passage he thanks God that the religious senti- ments inspired by his mother, enabled him to avoid the dissipations and immorality of young men of fashion. While in the Republican army he records : " My officers laughed and talked at Mass. I enjoined more reverent behaviour, and rebuked them." Another entry in the journal relates how the people in a village where he was quartered wished to hang two priests. " I rushed out and saved them, the mob saying they would let them off as a favour to M. de Chartres, who was a good patriot. I gave my arm to one priest, and the Mayor gave his the other. We had to cross a little footbridge without rails. The mob tried to put their sticks between the priests' legs to make them fall into the water. I called out to them to keep their promise, and they quieted down." Later on, when an exile in England, he said : " It is not a question of being a Christian of one de- nomination or the other, but of being a Christian or not. That, in my opinion, is the only question of importance in these horrible times, when religion and morals are attacked on all sides, and irreligion and immorality spread their fatal influence so rapidly." After the Revolution of 1830 the French people, knowing that Charles X. made common cause with 209 14 THE LIFE OF MAEIE AMELIE the Church, wished to remove all outward signs of religion after they had driven him away. Crucifixes were cut down from public places, and priests dared not appear in clerical attire. This attack came from the middle class, who had adopted Voltairean ideas. Jules Janin said : " Catholicisme ne va plus," and a University inspector at the College of Rennes said : ** This is a great era, we may assist at the funeral of a great religion". A few years later a remarkable reaction took place. If religion had died, there had certainly been a resurrection. In 1830 the sight of a young man in church would have been con- sidered astonishing. In 1835 young men thronged to Notre Dame to hear Lacordaire. The Pope founded an order of Benedictine monks at Solesmes, and Abb^ Gu^rangur appeared with a crozier and mitre, the first time they had been seen since the reign of Louis XVI. In 1830 France was officially irreligious. In 1835 Louis Philippe ventured to show himself well dis- posed to Cathohcism. The Chapel of St. Germain I'Auxerrois was reopened, and Chancellor Barthe, who signed the decree, said : " I have experienced all the tribulations incident to the career of a statesman, but a moment like this makes up for all ". Church endowments were raised, and the number of priests increased by the Government of Louis Philippe, and he spent 1,000,000 francs in embellish- ing churches. The Pope, Gregory XVL, when ad- vising the French clergy, who were mostly Legitimists, to submit to his Government, said : " I am much 210 THE LIFE OF MARIE AMELIE pleased with King Louis Philippe. I wish all the Kings of Europe were like him." Attempts to assassinate the King continued throughout twelve years, but the people always cheered and congratulated him after his escape. Marie Am^lie showed great courage and firmness throughout these years of stress and trial, saying : " Since God has placed this Crown of Thorns on our heads, we must fight for it and maintain it at all costs ". She was an exceptional woman ; she ever rose to the occasion, and through all the vicissitudes of her life displayed the qualities that each event demanded. It was quite ten years before France settled down, order was established, and Louis Philippe's Govern- ment could hold its own. Marie Amelie was exceptionally fortunate in her children, who were all unusually gifted, and she had much domestic happiness, which fortified her to en- dure the ups and downs of political life. At ten o'clock all but the King breakfasted to- gether ; at eleven they passed into the drawing-room ; the Princesses and their mother sat round a table, where each had her drawer, of which she kept the key, and in which the needlework was put away. They all sewed at garments for the poor, but not Mdme. Adelaide, who was never seen with a needle in her hand. In the afternoon they often had a game of billiards. Marie Amelie was the best player, and acted as marker. Each player contributed a franc, and the pool was given by the winner to some 211 THE LIFE OF MARIE AMELIE charity. At three o'clock all, including the King, went out driving, to Neuilly, to Versailles or St. Cloud. Dinner was at six o'clock ; there were never less than twenty-five guests at table. After dinner all assembled in the King's drawing-room, where visitors came every evening to pay their respects. Louis Philippe and his sons glanced at the news- papers, political brochures and caricatures, which were daily placed on the round table. The Princes used to read aloud the attacks made upon them, and show the caricatures to the members of the household or to visitors, asking their opinion, and thus often placing loyal admirers in an awkward position. The Princesses entered into all Court gaieties with zest ; they attended reviews, visited hospitals, and made themselves very popular. The two eldest sons, the Dues d'Orleans and Nemours, entered the army ; the third, Prince de Joinville, entered the navy. The crown of Belgium was offered to the Due de Nemours, but declined, and Prince Leopold of Saxe-Cobourg was finally elected. The Dutch disputed his right, and King Louis Philippe sent an army of 60,000 men to help King Leopold, his son-in-law.^ The Dues d'Orleans and de Nemours accompanied the troops. It was the first time the Due de Nemours had been on active service, and Marie Amdlie, who still 1 Princess Louise, Marie Am61ie's eldest daughter, married the King of the Belgians, August, 1832, 212 THE LIFE OF MARIE AMELIE kept up the habit of corresponding with her sons, wrote charming letters to him. On the 3rd of December, 1832, she wrote a letter for both sons : '* Mes amis cheris. On awakening this morning I received the long and interesting letter from Chartres.^ I do not know how to thank my beloved son for it. It is a treasure ! I first read it to your father while he was dressing, then to the household in the salon, and afterwards made Pain^ copy a part which your father wishes to show the Ministers. How I love our brave army, from the general in command down to the drummer boy, not excepting a certain Field Marshal (Nemours) and a Colonel of Lancers (Chartres). I feel so thoroughly a Frenchwoman." In reply to the Due de Nemours' account of his first engagement she wrote, 7th December, 1832 : '* Mon blond petit cheri. Yesterday, at midnight, I received your letter giving such a dear natural account of your ' bapteme de feu '. "I embrace you for myself as well as for your father. Being a Frenchman, and the son of such a father, your conduct could not have been otherwise, but it is satisfactory to your mother to have this proved. God will preserve you for the mother who lives only for you." A little later she writes : *' My dear and beloved sons. Yesterday your father brought a letter from ^The eldest son, though now Due d'Orl^ans, was still always called " Chartres " by his family. - The King's private secretary. 213 THE LIFE OF MARIE AMELIE Chartres to my room, he read it to me, for I was so agi- tated that I could not read it myself. Continue to write frankly to him and give him all details. You cannot imagine how greatly confidences from you please him, your excellent father who has such need of consolation. In the evening all the Ministers came in succession, and the Marshal seated himself at my side and showed me a letter he had received from Chartres, by which he felt greatly flattered. I was delighted to think of your pleasure in being in the vanguard, for I hope my children will always be first at the post of honour and duty. Wherever you are, set the example of courage, uprightness, prudence and benevolence, so that your name may be blessed wher- ever you go. " Adieu, my beloved ones. I embrace you and love you from the depth of my heart. " In your letters address me not as Queen, but as mother ; it is the title I prefer. ''(Signed) Marie Amelie." The two brothers distinguished themselves, and when the news of the taking of Anvers, which ended the campaign, reached Paris on Christmas Day, great was the joy at the Tuileries. Mme. Guizot, writing to her sister next day, said : " My husband being unwell deputed me to present his congratulations at the Palace ; it was a pleasure to see the King and Queen, so patriotic so parental, so delighted to know that their sons are out of danger, so proud of the victory of the French army, so simple 214 THE LIFE OF MARIE AMELIE in speaking of their sons' bravery. The Queen said to me : ' My sons have done their duty, and I am charmed that it is now known that they can be counted upon in all emergencies'." Probably her pride in them and joy in their safety helped her to bear with equanimity what had lately happened in another direction, and which must have been a great trial and grief to her, i.e., the imprisonment of her niece, the Duchesse de Berry, at Blaye. The Duchesse de Berry had courage, intelligence and heart. Her love of France was almost exagger- ated. She took the rights of her son very seriously, and would have been willing to die many deaths in defence of them. When Charles X. abdicated in favour of the Due de Bordeaux she could hardly be prevented going to the Chamber and claiming the Regency. " What a misfortune it is to be a woman," she said. In exile she still considered herself as Regent for her son, and was determined not to give up his king- dom without a struggle. At his birth, which was an occasion of great re- joicing to the Legitimists, the Castle and Estate of Chambord had been bought for him by public sub- scription ; and during his years of exile, Comte de Chambord was the title he was known by. The very greatest pains had been taken with his education, he had great intelligence and a truly noble heart. His governor had warned him against being led by flattery, and one day when a visitor who had paid him fulsome compliments had departed, the little Prince said : 215 THE LIFE OF MARIE AMELIE " He was a flatterer, but he did not get my cheese ". One day at Prague, where he went with his grand- father in the days of their exile, a Royalist visitor told him he ought to be King of France. " The place is taken," replied the boy. " He who has taken it should be killed," said the visitor. " But I forbid it," said the Comte de Chambord with much decision. He probably knew nothing of his mother's plans which had not the approval of Charles X. The Due de Blacas, too, did his utmost to dissuade her from making an attempt to raise La Vendee, which was what she intended to do. But she was in cor- respondence with Legitimists of France, and carried on her preparations with method and vigour. In 1831 the Due de Modena received her at Lucca and promised his assistance ; she also visited Rome and Naples, accompanied by Due de Blacas, Comte de Mesnard and the Comte de Rosanter. At Rome she met again a young Sicilian nobleman whom she had known in the days of her youth. He was in the Diplomatic Service. The renewal of their acquaint- ance was destined to have a fatal effect on her fortunes. Her partisans thought she had only to appear in the South of France bearing a white flag and that a general rising would take place in her favour. When their preparations were completed, they embarked with her on a steamer obtained by the Vicomte St. Prie and landed at Saoussa near Marseilles. Six years before, on arriving at Marseilles, a salute of guns was 216 DucHESsE DE Berry To face 2}. 216 THE LIFE OF MARIE AMELIE fired to greet the future Queen of France, as she was* then considered, now she had to hide in a farmhouse, while M. de Lachan and M. de Bonnund and their followers marched through the streets waving the white flag and crying " Vive Henri VIII. Vive la Religion". They also went to the Church of St. Laurent, and hoisted the white flag there and rang the tocsin. A crowd assembled, composed chiefly of women. The coastguards cut down the white flag and a regiment of Louis Philippe's Government soon appeared, dispersing the crowd and arresting some of them. At noon the Duchesse de Berry in her farm- house received a note from the leader of her party saying : ** All is lost. We must leave France." She replied : '* We will go to la Vendee. I have sent messengers to prepare Nantes, Rennes and Lyons for my coming, and I will not stop them." It was impossible to obtain horses or carriages, so the Duchesse de Berry set off on foot, accompanied by Marechal de Bourmont and M. M. de Brissac Villeneuve, Mesnard and Auguste Bonrecueil. The latter was a most devoted adherent of the Duchesse, and lost his life fighting for her cause at the battle of La Chene. They went to the house of Baron de Charette. He belonged to an illustrious Vend^an family and had married the Comtesse de Vierzon, daughter of the Due de Berry and Amy Brown. The Duchesse de Berry continued her progress disguised as a peasant boy and was called " Petit Pierre," for Louis Philippe had sent troops to stop her proceedings. Her ex- pedition was not entirely a wild-goose chase ; many 217 THE LIFE OF MARIE AMELIE Vendeans responded to her appeal, for the nobles had been drilling the peasants and had laid up stores of ammunition. The celebrated Orator Berryer had previously traversed la Vendee and had said : " With such a people everything is possible ". A member of the Royalist Committee in Paris did not take her seriously, and said : " If the Duchesse de Berry is not allowed to go on, she will die of grief ; but Walter Scott ought to be hung, it is all his fault ". Berryer was sent to tell her that her efforts were useless, her cause hopeless. The interview took place at midnight; she received him in a barn, seated on a, wooden bedstead. Her eloquence won his heart, and he said : " There is stuff in her enough for twenty kings ". He thought he had persuaded her to retire to England, but was mistaken. She had real hardships to endure, but was always cheerful and undaunted. Everything had been arranged for a general rising throughout la Vendee on Sunday, 3rd June, 1832. Sunday was chosen because the assembling of peasants, as if for church, would excite no notice, but two days previously the letters and papers of the Duchesse de Berry, which were hidden in a cave at Charli^re, fell into the hands of Louis Philippe's gendarmes, and from that moment all chance of success was over. Louis Philippe's regulars found little difficulty in dispersing the Vendean troops ; only one important battle took place, at La Chene, when Charette's army showed great gallantry, as did the defenders of the castle at la P^nissi^re. 218 THE LIFE OF MARIE AMELIE The Duchesse de Berry was obliged to go into hiding, and found shelter in the house of the two Miles, de Guigny, at Nantes. She lived in their attic for five months, during which time she con- tinued to correspond with Legitimists in different parts, by means of twenty-five ciphers. The Duchesse de Berry had the faculty of winning the devotion of all who approached her, and of this she received many proofs while at Nantes ; but there was a Judas among her followers — a German Jew named Deutz was her betrayer. He had become converted to Catholicism, and was received into the service of the Duchesse de Berry on the recommendation of the Pope, and had taken a solemn oath to devote himself to her and the Legitimist Cause. She had sent him to Lisbon and to Madrid with despatches. When he returned to France he heard that the Vend^an Insurrection was over, the cause lost and the Duchesse de Berry in hiding. So Deutz con- ceived the idea of betraying her to Louis Philippe's Minister, Thiers, who promised him 500,000 francs if he delivered her up. He went to Nantes under the name of Gonzagues, and made himself known to the Legitimists, making inquiries as to the where- abouts of the Duchess, who soon heard of this. She said : '* Show him this half of a card ; if he has the other half it is Deutz ". He had the other half, and the Duchess agreed to receive him. Her friends mistrusted him, and persuaded her not to receive him in her attic, but in a neighbouring house to which she had access. 219 THE LIFE OF MARIE AMELIE Deutz came in very nervous and embarrassed, and threw himself at her feet, swearing devotion. He pretended that her sister, the Queen of Spain, had promised to help her, and to send money and troops. While he was with her, the Duchess received a note saying : " The man you confide in has betrayed you to Thiers ". Smiling, she turned to Deutz and said : " Is it you ? " He also smiled and said ; *' Possibly ". Thiers had sent orders to the Commander of the Garrison and to the Prefect of Nantes to give Deutz all the assistance he required. The same evening, while the Duchesse de Berry was talking to Mile, de Guigny in her bedroom, the brother, M. de Guigny, rushed in crying : " Fly, Madame, the house is sur- rounded, and the street lined with soldiers ! " It had been decided long before, that, should there be any danger of the Duchesse de Berry's abode being dis- covered, and she herself arrested, she should hide in a secret place, which was entered by removing a slab from the fireplace in the sitting-room. The Duchess had to crawl in, and was followed by Mmes. de Mesnard and de Guibourg, and Mile. Kersabiac. The troops commanded by General Drouet ran- sacked the house. From their hiding-place the Duchess and her friends could hear the voice of Deutz conducting them. " Thank God he is not a Frenchman ! " said the Duchess. 220 THE LIFE OF MARIE AMELIE All the houses in the street were ransacked and placed under guard ; no one was allowed to go in or out. Twelve hundred soldiers were employed. On the second day some masons employed to search for holes in the wall, lit a fire. The con- cealed party endured it till they were nearly stifled, and the Duchesse de Berry's dress caught fire. They must either die or surrender ! So they made their presence known. The slab was removed from the fireplace and out came a little woman with an uncovered head, dressed in a brown woollen dress, smeared with ashes and having a burnt arm. One of the gendarmes exclaimed : " Is it you, Madame la Duchesse ? " She replied : " Yes, it is I. You are Frenchmen and soldiers, I trust to your honour." The men were profoundly moved, but hearing voices, the Police Commissioners entered, and all hope of escape was lost. The Prefect, M. Duval, entered with his hat on. He just put a finger to his hat as salutation, and then said : " Yes, 'tis the Duchesse de Berry". She was then taken to the Castle of Nantes ; there every one admired her heroism and treated her with as much deference as if she had been at the Tuileries. The following day she was taken by sea to the Citadel of Blaye. When Deutz went to the house of the Minister of the Interior to receive the price of his treachery, Didier, who was seated at a table on which were some packets of gold, would not allow him to come 221 THE LIFE OF MARIE AMELIE near, but held out the packets of money at the end of a pair of tongs, and then pointed to the door. The case of the Duchesse de Berry aroused intense enthusiasm. M. de Vilette, the Comte de la Ferro- nays, the Dues de Fitzjames and de Laval, wrote to Marshal Soult, President of the Ministerial Council, offering themselves as hostages that she might be set free. The Comte de Montalembert-Esse offered him- self and his whole family for the same purpose. The Marquise de Valori, and Marechale Oudinot^ Duchesse de Reggio, begged to be allowed to share her captivity ; the latter had been her lady-in-waiting. Some Parisian ladies, headed by the Princesse de Bauffremont, sent her a trousseau, and a Parisian book- seller a collection of delightful books. Many Legiti- mists came to Blaye, but were not allowed to see her. The Royalists in Paris went into mourning, gave no balls, and got up a subscription for Marie Bossy, the Guignys' servant, who had refused a large bribe offered to induce her to betray the Duchess, and asked to be allowed to serve her in prison. The newspapers published a letter headed "A voice from the tomb," and said to be written by the late King of Naples to Louis Philippe. It ran : ** To my brother-in-law. My daughter, your niece, is in prison. A Princess of Naples, the kingdom which received you when you were a wanderer and fugitive, is now your captive ! " etc., etc. Chateaubriand wrote to ask the Duchesse de Berry to appoint him her counsel, if she were brought to trial. But Guizot said : " It is not well to bring royalty to trial. Ac- 222 THE LIFE OF MARIE AMELIE quitted, they are conquerors ; condemned, they excite sympathy as victims." Louis Philippe said: " No one could wish to bring the Duchesse de Berry to trial. Princes are inconvenient in prison ; people conspire to free them, and they excite more sympathy than they would if free." Why then did Louis Philippe give the orders for the arrest of the Duchesse de Berry, and why did he allow her to be detained at Blaye ? Because the state of her health made it necessary for her to announce that a private marriage had taken place between her and the Marchese Lucchesi Palli, in Italy. She had sent him with her manifestoes to la Vendue, and he had visited her there. Louis Philippe was persuaded by his advisers to retain the Duchesse de Berry at Blaye, and to give great publicity to the birth of her expected child/ as the effect of her marriage would be to entirely destroy her influence with the Legitimist party, and she would cease to be a political power to be reckoned with. Louis Philippe has been greatly blamed for his treatment of the Duchesse de Berry, for publishing to the world the weakness of a woman, and making capital of it for political ends. While imprisoned at Blaye the Duchesse de Berry wrote to Marie Amelie to intercede for the life of one of her adherents. She said ; " In spite of the difference in our present situations, a volcano is ^ Before the announcement of the marriage many infamous reports concerning her were circulated. 223 THE LIFE OF MARIE AMELIE beneath you. God knows what may be the fate of either of us, but some day you may thank me for having confided in you, and given you an opportunity of earning the gratitude of my unfortunate friends. " I wish you happiness, Madame, for I have too high an opinion of you to believe that you can be happy in your present position." Marie Amelie refused to receive this letter, and when M. de Mesnard went to see her and begged her to use her influence to get permission for him to go to the Duchesse de Berry at Blaye, she promised nothing ; but M. de Mesnard afterwards said : " I cannot but believe that the Queen is sincerely grieved at her niece's position, but I hear she has little or no influence in State affairs." M. de Mesnard and the Miles, de Guigny had been imprisoned for a time, and condemned to pay a heavy fine for conspiring against the Government. But the fine was remitted, and they were released before the expiration of their sentence. After recovering from her accouchement, the Duchesse de Berry was allowed to leave Blaye and to go to Sicily, where she was met by her husband, Lucchesi Palli, and received with royal honours by her brother Leopold, Comte de Syracuse, and a country house was allotted to her as a residence. The little daughter born to her at Blaye did not live a year, and was buried in the Lucchesi Palli tomb at Palermo. The Marchese Lucchesi Palli was a very hand- some man, ten years younger than the Duchesse de 224 THE LIFE OF MARIE AMELIE Berry, who was thirty-four. She treated him as her husband, the Court of Naples treated him as lier chamberlain. He himself always treated her as Queen, taking her orders for the day, and speaking to her in the third person. He was a clever, amusing man, ex- cellent company and full of tact. He made himself thoroughly French, and was well versed in the history of France, and of the pedigrees and traditions of the French nobility. The Duchesse de Berry was thoroughly devoted to him, and bore him two daughters and a son. The Duchesse de Berry never hung her head. She said : " Only failure is blamable ; had my enter- prise succeeded, I should have been acclaimed as a heroine". She had intended keeping her marriage secret till her son was of age.^ Charles X. was greatly incensed at her marriage, but the saintly Duchesse d'Angouleme took her part, and finally succeeded in appeasing the anger of her uncle, and getting him to receive the Duchesse de Berry. The Comte de Chambord married the daughter of the Due de Modena, but had no children. ^ The Duchesse de Berry always spoke very bitterly of all the d'0rl6ans family except Louise, who married the King of the Belgians. Louise, she said, was a saint. 225 15 CHAPTER XII. Louis Philippe as Statesman — The Admiration of his Ministers — The Great Benefits he Conferred on France — The Charities of Marie Am6lie — Marie Am61ie's Distinguished Sons — Her Letters to them — The Marriages of the Due d'Orleans and Due de Nemours — Bravery of the whole d'Orleans Family — Attempts on Life of Louis Philippe. For a long time great prejudice was felt against Louis Philippe throughout Europe, and great sym- pathy with Charles X. This feeling was universal. At the Court of Austria the French Ambassador expressed to an Austrian Countess his admiration of her tiara. " Quelle belle couronne," he said. She replied : " Au moins elle n'est pas volee ". By degrees, however, it was recognised that if he had obtained the crown by questionable methods, he was making good use of his power. He himself said : " In accepting the crown I entered the lists to com- bat the forces of anarchy. The anarchists had nothing to lose : I staked my life and fortune, and that of my family." A passage in the Lettre Parisienne of the day, says : " It is sad to see kings exiled, guillotined and assassinated by the misunderstanding of the populace. Formerly, if any one displeased a king, the king sent 226 '1^'-^ fi" \fS Louis Philippe, King of the French To face p. 226 THE LIFE OF MARIE AMELIE liim to the Bastille. Now, if ca king displeases the people, they send him to exile." ^ The life of Louis Philippe at the Tuileries was one of hard work, not of representation. Yet though he has been called bourgeois, he held a more splendid Court than that of any European monarch of the day. Carriages, horses, liveried servants were superb ; Jttes, magnificent and more numerous than in former reigns ; in the interior of his palace he met with nothing but deference and empressement to foresee and execute his wishes. He did not like having to allow himself to be treated as a comrade by the National Guard, or accepting glasses of wine from passers by, as he was forced to do for a time, but he was at heart a grand seigneur by hereditary tastes and instincts, though he was bour- geois, if it is " bourgeois " to be a faithful husband and good father, simple in life and affable in manners. Marie Amelie, too, thought a king's Court should not resemble a Revolutionary Club ; a sovereign should be treated by his subjects with as much deference as a father by his sons, and that certain concessions weaken, and that dignity is necessary to those who govern, and an air of authority in- dispensable. So though etiquette was simplified, life at the Tuileries was gradually regulated on royal ^ In the nineteenth century four infants were at their birth acclaimed with joy as a gauge of the stability of their dynasties. All met the same fate — died in exile without reigning. They were the King of Eome, the Due de Bordeaux, the Comte de Paris and the Prince Imperial. 227 THE LIFE OF MARIE AMELIE lines, and King and Queen each had their separate establishment, officers of household, aide-de-camp, ladies in waiting, etc., as did each of the Princes and Princesses. Louis XVIII. and Charles X. had left the royal Palaces, Fontainebleau and Versailles, in a very dil- apidated state. It was the pride and pleasure of Louis Philippe to restore them. He practically pre- sented Versailles to the nation, in establishing the Musee in that Palace, and on the opening day 2,000 people, members of all the liberal professions, were entertained by the King, at a dinner of royal mag- nificence. The restoration of Versailles, and the turning of it into a National Museum, and collecting there paintings of all the great scenes and persons of the history of France, even of the Bonapartist era, was the great work of his reign. Although he has been accused of avarice, the Provisionary Government, after the Pe volution of 1848, which had in its hands the documents relating to the Civil List and the private fortune of Louis Philippe, found that he had spent 48,000,000 francs for the nation in restoring Versailles and Fontainebleau, and other acts of public munificence, including 21,000,000 francs given directly in charity. If the circumstances under which he ascended the throne are questionable, yet there was never a better king. Emile Ollivier said : *' Louis Philippe was cer- tainly the first statesman of the day. He had the most valuable and diverse qualities, experience, culti- 228 THE LIFE OF MARIE AMELIE vation, vast stores of knowledge, wit, probity, cour- age, humanity and personal attractiveness." ^ After a hard day's work, holding his own against the diplomacy of all Europe, Louis Philippe would often spend the evening going over criminal cases, hoping to find a reason for saving a condemned man from execution. He would fight his chancellor and the lawyers most obstinately, step by step, and he suffered anguish if he was at last obliged to give up the case, and sign the order for execution. On reading newspapers that urged his assassina- tion, he would merely say : " Every one must live ". When Meunier made an attempt on the King's life, the mother came and asked the King to pardon him. Louis Philippe replied : '' He has repented ; I have already forgiven him ". The life of the Queen was also a very busy one. She rose early, and after the toilet would open her large correspondence. She heard Mass every day, and after the family breakfast at ten o'clock, used to sit and work with her daughters and daughters- in-law till twelve o'clock, which was the hour for special audiences. When they were over she would work with her secretaries. Every day the menu for dinner was submitted to her ; she allotted the royal boxes at the theatre to friends, and settled the number of carriages and horses to be kept for the whole family and the household. But the greater part of the time of herself and her secretaries was 1 Another of his Ministers, Victor Cousin, said : " II est notre maitre, k tous". 229 THE LIFE OF MARIE AMELIE occupied by attending to petitions and charitable matters. The secretaries had plenty to do in reading and classifying petitions, and then deciding how much was to be given to the favoured applicants. Marie Amelie insisted on reading every petition herself, and wrote her instructions and comments on the margin, begging M. Appert^ to attend to the case. He says : " I saw her every day but never with- out being affected by her perfections and holiness. Neither the religion nor politics of the applicant was considered, only misery. If there was an in- surrection, and cries and threats were heard under the windows, she would say ; ' Help as many of these miserable people as you can. Bread is dear, trade bad. Seeing a wife and children starve is enough to turn a man's head. They do much that is wrong, but they are excusable. I am comfortable in these warm rooms, but wretched when I think of so many people in the city suffering from cold and hunger. To give is my only pleasure in the midst of all our troubles. He who invented the saying : ' Happy as a king,' had never worn a crown.' " Marie Amelie's private income amounted to 500,000 francs, but she gave 400,000 in alms. A person who was very poor was advised to apply to the Queen for help. She refused, saying: " We are Bonapartists. Whenever I opened the gate to Josephine she nodded her thanks, and the Emperor would say : ' Bon jour, grosse vilaine '. Can ^ Her secretary. 230 .Windsor Castle Queen Marie Amelie Winterlmlter To face p. 230 THE LIFE OF MARIE AMELIE one forget such benefits ? " The woman had been concierge at Malmaison, and was very stout and ugly. Another Bonapartist wrote as follows to Marie Amelie : " Madame. If the Bourbons, to the sorrow of France, had not returned, my beloved protectress, the Empress Marie Louise, would be on the throne, and I should not be in the humiliating position of having to tell you that I have nothing to eat, and that the pallet on which I sleep will be thrown out of the shed that is my abode, because I have not paid rent for a year. I dare not ask help from you, because I feel such great sorrow for the removal of my true sovereign that I cannot even promise grati- tude. If you do not think it right to let me die in want, I will accept a loan, but a gift would make me blush." On this petition the Queen wrote : " Special. Needs immediate assistance. She must be very miserable to be so unjust. Give her 100 francs from me. Inquire into her position and report to me." M. Appert inquired and found the case deserving of help. So, besides the Queen's donation, he got a subscription from each of the Princes, and put the family in comfortable circumstances. It may well be asked if the Republicans ever did so much for the benefit of the people as the Royalties they were so anxious to overthrow. The liberals were infuriated against the aristocracy that would not admit them into its ranks, and wished to over- throw it and constitute a new aristocracy themselves. 231 THE LIFE OF MARIE AMELIE Was it the true spirit of democracy, the real desire for equality, that drove them into revolution ? No, it was self interest. Did they treat those beneath them, their servants, employees, tradesmen, more politely and considerately than did the old nobility ? After their triumph did they show themselves more benevolent, just and humane than the old nobility or royal personages ? Emphatically, let it be said, they did not. Marie Amelie had reason to be proud of her sons. Lamartine, the most determined opponent of Louis Philippe, and finally the cause of the fall of the Orleans dynasty, does justice to the family of Louis Philippe. He says : " The sons would have been eminent as citizens, if they had not been Princes ; among the Princesses all desirable qualities were to be found : each was either pious, beautiful, cultivated, venerated or admired ". The sons certainly served a stiff apprenticeship to the duties of their station. They reviewed troops, commanded at manoeuvres, presided at fetes or coun- cils, made journeys for political purposes, conducted diplomatic negotiations, fought wherever the French army was engaged on land or sea,^ marched against insurrectionists," and when an attempt on the King's life was expected, never failed to be there. When Fieschi's infernal machine exploded and killed forty people at a review of the National Guard, 1 The Prince de Joinville distinguished hinaself in the navy. - The Dues d'0rl6ans and Nenaours were sent to put down the terrible insurrection at Lyons, 1834. 232 THE LIFE OF MARIE AMELIE at Paris, 1834, three of the Princes were with their father. They, as well as the King, had been fore- warned by M. Thiers that an attempt on the King's life was feared. They thanked him, but only replied : " We shall be there ". The ladies of the family had the same high quality of courage ; they thought their husbands, brothers or sons must face peril as if they were going to a royal function. Marie Amelie and Mme. Adelaide, though fear- ing, as they watched the King's departure, that they might never see him again, made no effort to detain him. The machine exploded as the royal procession was passing through the Boulevard du Temple. The King said to the son who was nearest to him : " Join- ville, that's for me ". Their horses were struck, their clothes spattered with blood. Forty of those around lost their hves. In the midst of the uproar the King was quite composed ; when the smoke had cleared away he said : " Now, gentlemen, let us pro- ceed," and went through the day's programme un- moved. However, he broke down when he got back to the Queen, chiefly through grief at the valuable lives lost. The Queen at once accompanied him to condole with the widow of one of the victims, Mar- shal Mortier, Due de Treviso, and all the royal family attended the solemn obsequies of the victims, on 28th July. In the same year the Due de Nemours was sent to London to show himself. In the* Courts of 233 THE LIFE OF MARIE AMELIE Europe it was the fashion to turn into ridicule " the bourgeois Monarchy" of France. These prejudices had to be dispelled. No two persons were better qualified for this than Marie Amelie's two eldest sons. Both were tall and of most distinguished appearance, and had polished manners. The Due d'Orleans was a charmer, and the Due de Nemours the living re- production of the portraits of his great ancestor, Henri Quatre. Two less bourgeois-like or middle- class young men could not be found. ^ At that time William IV. was on the Throne of England, and he invited the Due de Nemours to stay at Windsor Castle ; the royal dukes also invited him to visit them. Nemours wrote to his mother : " I was received everywhere a merveille, petted and feted ad lib. I visited the Duchess of Kent and Princess Victoria at Kensington Palace ; the latter is small but has beautiful eves. His mother replied : " Lord Palmerston has written in your praise, and I have received charm- ing letters about you from the Duchess of Kent and Princess Victoria". In April of the following year, the Due de Nemours accompanied his elder brother on a tour in Germany and Austria, which had a twofold object : the making of themselves known at the Courts of these countries, and also the obtaining of a bride for the Due d'Orleans. It was hoped that an alliance ^Comtesse de Mirabeau says: "The two eldest sons of the King, mounted on prancing horses, and with the sun gUttering on their accoutreOaents, looked like veritable fairy princes ". 234 THE LIFE OF MARIE AMELIE with an Austrian archduchess might be obtained. The Princes were plentifully supplied with money to support their rank, and their suite consisted of the Dues de Valencay and d'Elchingen, and three other noblemen. They went first to Berlin, where they were received at Court with every possible mark of consideration, and the Berlin newspapers of the day say that : " All who had the honour to approach the French Princes cannot speak highly enough of their extreme distinction. Their conversation is de- lightful, their tact exquisite. Their liberality to all who have had the honour of serving them has been on a splendid scale." The same splendid reception was given and the same verdict passed at Vienna. Prince Metternich said : " Their success was remarkable, they were pro- nounced perfect types of well bred, well educated young men ; very few like them are to be met, either in royal houses or less elevated ranks of society. They put to silence those most prejudiced against them. Their appearance, the tact evinced on all occasions, their ease of manner, equally removed from presumption as from shyness, were universally acknowledged and admired. The journey of these young Princes was a good political move for their father." But though their personal success was so great, the desired alliance was not arranged, the Due d'Or- leans did not obtain an Austrian bride. The Emperor was still prejudiced against the French nation, and the ladies of the family remembered Marie Antoinette 235 THE LIFE OF MARIE AMELIE and Marie Louise, and had little inclination to run the risks of a similar fate. The two Princes returned to Paris loaded with splendid gifts and feeling that they had made many private friends. The Austrian Emperor had given them each a splendid horse as a farewell present. Subsequently a marriage was arranged between the Due d'Orleans and Princess Helene of Meck- lenburg Schwerin, and took place at Fontainebleau^ 1837. On this occasion the Due de Nemours behaved with great generosity. A heated debate had taken place in the French Chamber, when the King had asked for a dowry for his eldest daughter, who was about to marry the King of the Belgians. The pro- duction of Louis Philippe's rent roll, and a complete statement of his income, was called for.^ When a grant was applied for for the Due d'Or- leans' own marriage, the same opposition was en- countered, and the Due de Nemours agreed to waive his own claim to an appanage, on condition that the Legislature made proper provision for the heir to the Throne. In spite of these difficulties the populace gave the bride a splendid reception when she made her ^ Louis Philippe felt this deeply. He said : "I have no mis- tress or favourite on which to spend the people's money, but I wish to assure my children's future". He had refused to attach his wealth to the Throne, and settled it on his family, only drawing the income himself. 236 THE LIFE OF MARIE AMELIE entrance into Paris, followed by the Princes on horseback, and the Princesses in splendid carriages. She was not pretty, but young and graceful. Her dresses were wonderful ; Palmyre, the celebrated dressmaker, having had orders to make them differ- ent from any that had been seen before. The Due d'Orleans was personally popular ; he was brave to temerity, but had other solid qualities which made him the hope of the royal family and the nation. An immense concourse acclaimed him and his bride as they entered the Champs Elysee. Mile, de Girardin, describing the cortege, says : " The Queen, Marie Amelie, was exquisitely dressed. Her blue capote was ravishing. The bride looked very young. Her hat was very pretty ; it was made of white rice straw, with a large marabout plume. Her dress was very elegant ; she wore a redingote of muslin, lined with pink." In honour of the wedding a splendid fete was given at Versailles on 10th June. A banquet was prepared for 1,500 guests, who were waited on by 2,000 servants, wearing the splendid d'Orleans livery. The evening ended with a ballet, represent- ing Versailles as it was in the days of Louis XIV., and one of those wonderful court pageants of the time, when the King himself danced in the ballet. Next day a horrible accident happened at a review, during the storming of a sham fort, and many people were crushed to death. This made a painful impression on the bride, who looked on it 237 THE LIFE OF MAKIE AMELIE as a bad omen for her married life.^ The Duchess© d'Orleans was a noble character, and her husband became devoted to her. The Queen regretted that her daughter-in-law was a Protestant, but soon be- came very fond of her. When the following year the young Duchess gave birth to a son, on whom Louis Philippe bestowed the title of Comte de Paris, and when the year after another son, the Due de Chartres, was born, as far as direct heirs were concerned, the continuance of the d'Orleans dynasty appeared well provided for. The dignitaries of the Catholic Church had for a long time refused to recognise the July Monarchy, and it was not until the death of the implacable Mon- seigneur Quelen occurred, that a royal christening could be arranged for the Comte de Paris. The new Archbishop, Mgr. Affre, held different views, and the ceremony was performed by him with all due pomp. This was the public recognition by the clergy of the d'Orleans dynasty, and a great joy to a devoted Cath- olic, such as Marie Amelie was. His aunt, Mile. Adelaide, helped to provide the Due d'Orleans with funds to support his position as heir to the Throne, and he gave magnificent balls and fetes at the Pavilion de Marsan. He also kept a fine hunting establishment, and delighted in asking dis- ^ A much worse accident and greater loss of life had occurred at the marriage fetes of Louis XVI. and Marie Antoinette, also at that of the present Emperor of Russia. Fresh in all memories, too, is the attempt on the life of the present King and Queen of Spain on their wedding day. 238 THE LIFE OF MAIUE AMELIE tinguished visitors, especially the English, to share his sport. The hunting costume was dark blue, with a red collar and silver buttons, which he would present to any favoured visitor, such as Lord Malmesbury, who relates in his Memoirs that after a good day's sport, when the stag led them from Chantilly to Beauvais, the Due d'Orleans, besides the buttons, gave him also a stag's foot, which he had made into a pen rack. Though it sometimes suited Louis Philippe to play the bmi bourgeois, no one knew better how to do things in magnificent style when occasion demanded it. The splendour of the marriage fes- tivities had a great effect on the mind of the people of Paris, and ground was gained politically. The King was able to go about more at his ease, with- out expecting to be shot at. France was carrying on war in Algiers. A first campaign, in which the Due de Nemours took part, had been unsuccessful, and in 1835 it became neces- sary to send out another expedition. Marie Amelie's three eldest sons claimed the right to fight for their country. The Due d'Orleans said : *' It rests with us to restore the position of a prince to its former dignity and glory. But in these days, in order to be forgiven for being a prince, it is necessary in every circumstance to do more than others." But, to his great chagrin, the Due d'Orleans could not obtain leave to join the expedition. His life was too valuable to be risked. Only Nemours was allowed 239 THE LIFE OF MARIE AMELIE to go, and he showed the utmost gallantry at the siege of Constantine, which was of long duration, but finally the French troops entered the city and planted the tricolour flag on the citadel. The Prince de Joinville had, without permission, left his ship at Bona, and come up with reinforcements, grieved to be too late to take part in the siege. He was a clever artist, and took sketches which afterwards enabled Horace Vernet to give an exact representa- tion of Constantine, in the picture now hanging in the Musee de Versailles. While the Queen was making preparations for the marriage of her second daughter, Princess Marie, to the Prince of Wurtemberg, she was in incessant anxiety as to the fate of her sons. News of the taking of Constantine reached Paris on the 22nd of June. Here is the Queen's own account of how it was received. Writing to the Due de Nemours she said : " I received Joinville's letter on the morning of the 22nd. It delighted me, but did not reassure me. I went for a turn in the park at Meudon, with the young people ; on returning I went to Bene- diction at the beautiful church of Notre Dame at Versailles. I felt such need to pray for you. In the evening we had a grand dinner for Prince Paul, and afterwards went to hear ' II Barbiere ' at the Opera. Yesterday morning was devoted to prepara- tions for Marie's departure. I was in my sitting- room talking to Chartres, the other young people were in the adjoining room, when your father opened the door and cried: * Taken ! Constantine is taken ! ' 240 THE LIFE OF MARIE AMELIE " Every one rushed in and surrounded your father. Then for two hours lasted one of those scenes you know so well. People came and went, embraced each other, copied the telegraphic messages, wrote notes, sent off men on horseback with the news. The cannon thundered at the Invalides as well as Versailles. We thanked God, but the accounts of the horrors of the assault and the death of the general, Damremont, cast a shadow over our joy ; also I must confess I was possessed by the fear that you were wounded, and they were hiding it from me. At eleven o'clock we all went to the cathedral at Versailles, to be present at the singing of a ' Te Deum '. The Bishop gave a fine address." The d' Orleans brothers were remarkably united and deeply attached to one another. In a delight- ful letter to the Due de Nemours, the Due d'OrMans says : " I am as pleased at your success as if it had been my own. I am sure that if you and Hadji ^ bring back any booty, you will put it at the disposal of the mess of the five brothers, of whom I am eldest. My only regret is for the death of the general. I feel as if I had passed on to him my ticket for the other world." The Due d'Orleans sincerely loved and respected his next brother, saying of him : " Nemours is duty personified," and if Marie Amelie had a favourite among her sons, it was Nemours. He and his brother Joinville stayed on at Constantine for a great ceremony, when the principal Arab chiefs took ^ The name by which Joinville was known in the family. 241 16 THE LIFE OF MAKIE AMELIE the oath of fealty to the French king. Afterwards, while marching to the coast, the French troops were attacked with cholera ; both Princes did all they could to allay panic, by themselves assisting to lift the dead or stricken on to the waggons. On reach- ing Bona, the brothers parted company, Prince de Joinville rejoining his cruiser, the Hercules, whose destiny was Brazil, and the Due de Nemours returning to France. Toulon, Marseilles, Lyons were preparing fHes in his honour, but the Due de Nemours was of a very retiring disposition, and fearing that he would endeavour to avoid them, his mother wrote : " I write with your father in begging you to accept with a good grace the demonstrations that are being prepared in your honour. All France shares in the joy at your success. D'Aumale was at Franconi's the other evening when the siege of Constantine was represented. The applause was immense when the figure of the Due de Nemours came on the scene. Do put a good finish on all you have done, endure patiently all the /Hes that are being prepared for you. Let every one say : ' The Due de Nemours is as amiable as he is brave'." But this letter did not reach the Duke before he left Oran, and he made a long detour to avoid the towns that were preparing to welcome him, and finally landed at Havre. His family were three weeks without news of him, and the public were pacified by being told that ''contrary winds had driven him to this port ". 242 THE LIFE OF MARIE AMELIE His mother went to meet him at Vernon. He appeared in the uniform of a general, to which rank he had been promoted in recognition of his services at Constantine. The Queen went down to his cabin and had a long talk with him ; she then attended mass at the cathedral, and afterwards presented her son's aide- de-camp, General Boyer, with the insignia of the rank to which he too had been promoted. A little event that was much talked of in Paris took place a few months later at the Annual Picture Exhibition. The King remarked and admired a well- executed picture of a battle scene in Africa. The painter's signature was unknown to him, and on in- quiring, great was his surprise and pleasure to find that it was the work of the Due de Nemours. In 1840 the Duke's marriage with the Princesse Victoire of Saxe-Cobourg was arranged. They had met at the Court of his sister, the Queen of the Belgians, Princesse Victoire being the niece of King Leopold.^ Marie Amelie was at Brussels while the negotia- tions were going on, and was particularly anxious for the marriage. Princesse Victoire was a charm- ing character, and her beauty was indisputable. The French Chamber being unwilling to make a grant to the Due de Nemours, his income was only 50,000 francs (£2,000) per annum, the eighth part of the joint income of the King and his sister ^ Also niece of the Duchess of Kent, and first cousin to Queen Victoria. 243 THE LIFE OF MARIE AMELIE Adelaide. The bride would inherit about the same amount from her parents. Marie Amelie wrote to the King: **In spite of the refusal of grant let the marriage take place ; the dear, good child will be a delightful wife for Nemours, and a pleasure and comfort to all of us ". So Duke Ferdinand of Saxe-Cobourg brought his daughter to Paris, and she was also accompanied by her brother Augustus.^ The marriage took place at St. Cloud on 27th April, 1840. A spectator, Baronne Frossard, has left an account of the im- pression created by the bride on her first appearance at the Tuileries, a few days after the marriage. " It was the King's birthday fete. Her Royal Highness accompanied our august Queen in the long and fatiguing tour of the grand state apartments ; on great occasions Her Majesty always stops and ad- dresses a few pleasant words to every lady whose position entitles her to it. In spite of the great reputation for beauty which had preceded Mme. la Duchesse de Nemours, contrary to custom, her beauty surpassed our expectations. She was ex- quisitely dressed in white tulle, embroidered with silver and pearls, and roses, the leaves of which were emeralds." Two months later the bride and bridegroom went to spend a fortnight with the Queen of England. The Duchesse de Nemours was first cousin of the Prince Consort as well as of the Queen, who, by the splendid fHe^ given in their honour, wished to ^ He married Princess Clementine d'Orleans eventually. 244 THE LIFE OF MAKIE AMELIE let the world at large know the high esteem in which she held her young relatives. At Windsor there is a beautiful painting by Winterhalter, of the Duchesse de Nemours and Queen Victoria sitting side by side, with the word " Cousins " underneath. But the Queen always said that she looked upon the young Duchess as a sister. She frequently invited the pair to visit her, and in her letters there are many references to these visits, and the Queen always speaks of the Duchesse de Nemours with great affection, and always with the addition of some expression of admiration for her beauty. Marie Amelie was not disappointed in her daughter-in-law on further acquaintance. The year after the wedding the Due de Nemours, accompanied by his brother, the Due d'Aumale, went to make his third campaign in Africa. His mother wrote to him as usual. In one letter she says : '' Sweet, dear Victoire only lives in Africa ; whatever she says or does has reference to you. She is indeed worthy of your love, and is an angel of piety and sweetness. She accompanies me to all the Church services. To-day we performed our Easter devotions together." 245 CHAPTER XIII. Notes on Marie Amelie's Sons — Their Characters and Careers {co7i- tinued) — Marriages of her Daughters — Sudden Death of Due d'0rl6ans, Heir to the Throne — Opinion of Europe — Effect on Dynasty — Sorrow of Marie Am61ie — Subsequent Life at Tuil- eries (Koutine of) — Marie Am6lie's Daughters-in-law. Amongst Marie Amelie's sons, the fourth, the Due d'Aumale, was generally considered to have the best abilities. He was certainly the richest, having in- herited Chantilly and the great wealth of his god- father, the last Prince de Conde.^ After distinguish- ing himself at college he entered the army and became captain of the 4th Light Infantry regiment. He was handsome, brave, full of wit and thoroughly a Frenchman. He soon became very popular in the army, won fame in the Algerian campaign, and finally had the satisfaction of breaking up the Smala of Abdul Kadir, May, 1843. In the intervals of campaigns he found time to marry his cousin, a princess of Bourbon Sicily, daughter of Marie Ame'lie's favourite brother, the Prince of Salerno. This was a great joy to Marie Amelie. Her new daughter-in-law was after her ^ Whose grandson and heir, Due d'Enghien, had been brutally murdered by Napoleon. 246 THE LIFE OF MARIE AMELIE own heart, sweet and pious, a petite and graceful young creature, with a melodious Italian voice. The Conde fortune was left to the Due d'Aumale through the instrumentality of the Prince de Conde's mistress, Mme. de Feuchars, who had been Sophy Dawes, an English fisherman's daughter. She was an infamous woman, but wished to be received at Court ; in fact it was a case of quid pro quo. Mdme. Adelaide and Louis Philippe agreed to bring about her reception at Court circles on condition that she used her influence with the old Prince de Conde for the disposition of his fortune in favour of the Due d'Aumale. After the will was made the Prince de Conde died under very suspicious circumstances, which implicated Mme. de Feuchars. Louis Philippe is blamed for hushing up the matter and causing a verdict of suicide to be published, though the cir- cumstances proved that suicide was impossible. Mme. de Feuchars had been well provided for in the will. She had wearied the Prince de Conde, and knew he contemplated leaving France ; had he managed to escape both she and Louis Philippe knew that the fortune would go to the little Due de Bordeaux. Marie Am^lie has been blamed for receiving and showing every civility to Mme. de Feuchars,^ but on this and other crucial matters she was overruled by her husband. One who knew them well ^ said : " The Queen spoils the King by a complete renuncia- ^ The Prefect refused to admit her to the Hotel de Ville re- ceptions. 2 Appert. 247 THE LIFE OF MARIE AMELIE tion of her own will for his". Only thus can we account for her not infrequent participation in a line of conduct that must have been repugnant and contrary to the principles of a refined and religious woman, such as she is known to have been. In spite of Louis Philippe's great and lasting affection for his wife, she certainly could not influence him politically. She wished him not to accept the crown ; he accepted it ; later, she wished him to fight for it, but he abdicated. The Prince de Joinville, "Hadji," was the fav- ourite of his aunt, Mdme. Adelaide. " He is like me and my father," she said, " that is why I prefer him to my other nephews." Joinville was the most gener- ally popular of the brothers. Sailor and artist, more than prince, he was negligent in his dress, and drank, smoked and swore like a veritable Jack Tar. But he had a passion for the arts, and was himself no mean artist, and wrote with facility and distinction. When on shore he used to accompany his aunt to visit her estates at Randau, Arc or Bizy, and she left the greater part of them to him at her death, the income of his share amounting to 1,100,100 francs.^ In 1840 the Prince de Joinville was sent on his frigate, La belle penile, to St. Helena, to bring back to France the ashes of the Emperor Napoleon, which ^ Madame Adelaide had left everything to Joinville, but when the Chamber refused a grant to Nemours, and on the death of his brother he became eldest son and prospective regent, a sense of justice made her allot him a share in her fortune. 248 THE LIFE OF MARIE AMELIE England had consented to give up. Every prepara- tion was made in Paris for a magnificent reception. Napoleon's remains were not to lie at St. Denis, among the ancient Kings of France, but at the Church of the Invalides, beside Turenne and other great generals, who had been the glory of the French nation. On the 15th of December the coffin, with a splendid military escort, passed through a crowd of 600,000 spectators to the church, where the King and royal family, the Archbishop of Paris, and a body of ecclesiastics awaited it. Addressing the King, '* Sire," said the Prince de Joinville, who advanced at the head of the procession, " I present to you the ashes of the Emperor Napoleon ". The King commanded General Bertrand to put Napoleon's sword and hat on the coffin, which was then placed on a magnificent altar in the centre of the church. The funeral service was performed with the utmost solemnity, and the " Dies Irae " chanted by a thousand voices. The immense assemblage were deeply affected, there was not a dry eye as the coffin of the great soldier was lowered into the grave. In 1843 the Prince de Joinville took a prominent part in the bombardment of Tangiers, which resulted in the submission of Abdul Kadir ; and afterwards went to Brazil. There he fell in love with and married a princess of the House of Braganza, Donna Francesca, sister of the Emperor of Brazil ^ and of ^ In the same month, May, 1843, the Emperor (Pedro II.) married Marie Amelie's niece, Theresa Christina, of Bourbon Sicily. 249 THE LIFE OF MARIE AMELIE the Queen of Portugal, and carried her off to France. " Happy is the wooing that is not long adoing." In July of the same year Mdme. Adelaide received the young couple with great rejoicing at her Chateau de Bizy, which was to be their home. In the same year Queen Victoria visited the French royal family at the Chateau d'Eu, and she thus refers to the bride. " Little Chica (Mme. Hadji) is a charming, sprightly, lively creature, with immense brown eyes." She was the merriest and frankest, also the most gracious and seductive of Marie Amelie's daughters- in-law. But though a flower, the Court thought her a very wild flower, and she scandalised the other Princesses by her want of conventionality, especially by singing aloud when they were all seated decorously at needlework at the round table in the salon. Marie Ame'lie's youngest son, "Toto," the Due de Montpensier, resembled his father in every par- ticular, in face, figure, tricks of manner, as well as in mind and character. In the later years of the reign, he and his wife were the King's favourites in the family circle, and exercised great influence over him. The Duchesse de Montpensier was the sister of Queen Isabella of Spain,^ and was very handsome, with large black eyes, splendid hair and a dignified ^ This marriage, looked upon as treachery by England, broke up the alliance of that country and France, and contributed to Louis Philippe's downfall (see chap. xiii.). 250 Pbincesse Louise d'Orleans, Queen of the BEuaANS BoRiT AT Palermo, 1812 To face p. 250 THE LIFE OF MARIE AMELIE carriage. Her daughter-like attentions and con- sideration pleased Louis Philippe vastly and won his heart. Of Marie Amelie's own daughters, it was said that amongst them all desirable qualities were to be found, either beauty, wit, intellectual power or nobility of character. The eldest, Princess Louise, was married in August, 1832, to Leopold, King of the Belgians. She was twenty, he was much older and a widower.^ The Princess was not much inclined to the marriage, but she was sweet tempered and very religious, so that when she was told that the alliance was desired for political reasons and would contribute to the welfare of France, she acquiesced, and her married life was a very happy one. The Princes of the House of Cobourg had attained a very influential position in Europe owing to their high reputation for sagacity and character, as well as by their marriage connections with the leading royal families of Europe. One was on the Throne of Belgium, two others next to the Throne, as Prince Consorts of the Queens of England and Portugal. The King of the Belgians, uncle of Queen Victoria, was her most intimate, beloved and re- spected relative. To her he described his bride as follows : " Your new aunt is extremely gentle and amiable, her actions are always guided by principle. She is always disposed to sacrifice her own comfort and inclinations for that of others. She is highly ^ Of Princess Charlotte of England, heiress to the Throne. 251 THE LIFE OF MARIE AMELIE informed and very clever, speaks and writes English, German and Italian. She speaks English very well indeed. In short, I may well recommend her as an example to all young ladies, princesses or others. She has very fair hair, blue eyes, a Bourbon nose and a small mouth, a very kind and intelligent expression. She rides and dances extremely well. Already great confidence and affection exists be- tween us ; she is desirous of doing anything that can contribute to my happiness, and I study to make her contented. She is a very great prize, which I highly value and cherish." Visits to her daughter at Brussels were a very great pleasure to Marie Amelie, and during her second visit she was present at the birth of her first grandson, the late King of the Belgians. The second d'Orleans princess, Princess Marie, was married to Prince Alexander of Wurtemberg in 1837.^ She was extremely energetic, full of la joie de vivre ; nothing came amiss to her, balls or politics ; in the latter she was an apt disciple of her Aunt Adelaide. She had remarkable abilities under a frivolous surface. Her married life lasted little more than a year. Her sufferings were terrible, her death very sudden. Only her brother Nemours was with her, and almost her last words to him were : " Tell Mamma how much I love her, and that I am glad she is not here to ^ During the festivities which took place on her arrival, she danced with the sons of Jerome Bonaparte. 262 Princesse Marie d "Orleans (Mdlle. de Valois) Born at Palermo, 1813 Tvfacep. 252 THE LIFE OF MARIE AMELIE be grieved by my sufferings". She left an infant son. The youngest daughter of Marie Amelie, Prin- cess Clementine, was handsomie, ^piritiielle, intelli- gent, and the most ambitious of the sisters. She it was, who, on several occasions, had excited the marked admiration of the late King Charles X. However, no great marriage was arranged for her. In 1843 she married, at St. Cloud, Prince Au- gustus^ of Saxe-Cobourg, brother of the Duchesse de Nemours, and son of Prince Ferdinand of Saxe- Cobourg. They had met frequently at the Court of Brussels, and also when Prince Augustus accom- panied his sister to France for her marriage. Apparently Prince Augustus was neither brilliant nor engaging. When he was visiting at Windsor- Queen Victoria wrote to her uncle in Belgium : " I cannot say much for poor Gusti, though I love him, but he is really too odd and inanimate ". Later, the Queen mentions him again: ''Clem seems very happy and writes that she is happiest when tete a tete with Gusti, which / should not fancy ". Princess Clementine^ survived all her brothers ^ His brother Leopold married Maria Gloria, Queen of Portugal. ^His father was brother of the Duchess of Kent, and of the King of the Belgians. 3 Her husband inherited the great possessions of the family in Hungary, and all the wealth of the family, his elder brother having to renounce this on marrying the Queen of Portugal. 253 THE LIFE OF MARIE AMELIE and sisters, and lived to see her son, Prince Fer- dinand, called to the Throne of Bulgaria. In July, 1842, when the kirigdom tvas quiet, and Marie Amelie seemed to be enjoying a spell of real peace and prosperity, and had recently had the pleas- ure of welcoming and /etingr her Sicilian relations (her brother had taken a daughter to marry the King of Spain and came to Paris), the blow fell which deprived the d'Orleans of its chief stay, and the nation of one on whom the hopes of the better part were placed. The Due d'Orleans met with an accident and was killed on his way to a review. His horses were res- tive, and he jumped from his carriage, fell on his head, and never recovered consciousness. A few minutes after he had started, while the rest of the royal party were waiting in the salon at Neuilly for the carriages that were to take them to the re- view, a commissioner of police entered and whispered something to the King, who exclaimed : " O my God ! Chartres has met with an accident, and has been carried into a house at Sablonville " ! Without waiting to hear more, Marie Amelie rushed out into the street on foot, and hurried in the direction of Sablonville. The King and Mdme. Adelaide followed in a carriage, picked her up, and all three drove on to the inn, where thev found the Due d'Orleans lying on a mattress on the floor. Doctor Pasquier told them there was no hope, the cure of Neuilly was sent for to administer the last Sacrament, while the d'Orleans family knelt around, 254 THE LIFE OF MARIE AMELIE praying and sobbing. In a few moments the Prince breathed his last. His death was an immense and irreparable loss both to his family and the nation. " The Chief of to-morrow " had disappeared, the Monarchy was shaken, for not only the friends of Louis Philippe's government but also its opponents had placed their hopes on him.^ The army bitterly lamented his loss. His little son, the Comte de Paris, was only four years old. Louis Philippe was sixty- nine. Lord Malmesbury wrote in his Memoirs : " What will be the result of this sad event ? Probably a revolution on the King's death. The French will never stand a long regency, as this would be." The Due d'Orleans' body was carried to the Chapel of Neuilly, the whole royal family following on foot. His poor wife arrived there later. She had heard of his death by wire, at Plombieres, and set off for Paris in the middle of the night. At a few posts from Plombieres she met the Duke's aide-de-camp and said ; ** I was too proud of him, and God has taken him away as a punish- ment ". This blow turned Marie Amelie into an old woman, and whitened her hair. To Queen Victoria she wrote ; " Mme. et tres chere Soeur. Je comptais que votre majeste et le Prince Albert s'assoceraient a notre immense dou- ^ His views were more modern even than his father's. 256 THE LIFE OF MARIE AMELIE leur; que Dieu vous benisse pour le tendre expres- sion de votre lettre. Nous somme aneantis par le coup dont Dieu nous a frappe', que sa Sainte Volonte soit faite. J'ai perdu I'objet de ma plus vif tendresse, celui qui depuis 32 ans avait etait mon bonheur et ma gloire, plein de vie, d'avenir, me tete n'y est plus, mon cour est fle'tri je tache de me resigner, je pleur et prie pour cet ame qui m'etait si chere ; et pour que Dieu nous conserve I'infortune et pre- cieux roi, dont la douleur est incommensurable ; que Dieu vous preserve Madame a jamais des pareilles douleurs." The Queen of the Belgians wrote : " Chartres was the head, heart and soul of our family". Marie Ame'lie gave more and more of her time to religious practices, her piety became more ardent ; she spent long hours in prayer at the Church of St. Roche and afterwards at the memorial chapel erected for the Due d'Orleans. No one had heart for fetes now ; life was some- what sad at the Tuileries. The Queen exercised a strict oversight over her young daughters-in-law, Nemours, d'Aumale, Joinville and Montpensier, who could not go out without the Queen's permis- sion, and telling her where they were going, and at what hour, and she always made inquiries as to the hour of their return. In the day time the grand- children at their play made the palace a little lively, but the evenings were dreary and monotonous. After dinner the family assembled in the drawing-room, next to the throne-room, and the Princesses sat round the 256 THE LIFE OF MARIE AMELIE table at needlework, in order of precedence, the eldest next the Queen. ^ The Duchesse d'Orleans, who was of a very in- dependent character, escaped this tutelage. After her husband's death she lived chiefly in her own apartments, occupying herself with her children, and only appeared occasionally in the salon of an evening, to please her mother-in-law. The Duchesse d'Or- leans was a very noble character, much looked up to, and though she had not the beauty of the Duchesse de Nemours, it was said " one glance from the Duchesse d'Orle'ans was worth a hundred from the Duchesse de Nemours. Her husband had been devoted to her, but the difference of religion (she was a Protestant) was a barrier to great intimacy with her mother-in-law, and a certain reserve prevented her being quite one of the family, as the other daughters-in-law were. And though Louis Philippe always showed extreme courtesy to his daughter-in-law, there seemed always to be in his mind, and that of his sister, a lurking fear that she might assert her claim to the regency in the event of the King's death. ^ Though they submitted, they, except the Duchesse de Nem- ours, probably rebelled at heart. The Duchesse de Montpensier, who was in bad health, when in a particularly uncomfortable position during the flight which followed the revolution of '48, sitting on a dark winter's night in the rain, on a log outside a town it was not safe to enter, while part of the escort had gone to get relays, said to the general who was with her when he con- doled with her on the trials of the position : "I much prefer these adventures to sitting at needlework in the Tuileries ". 257 17 THE LIFE OF MARIE AMELIE Her husband had left a will, in which he said that in case of his death, the Due de Nemours was to be looked on as head of the family, and eventually regent. His words were: "Nemours will be the head of my young family. I love him with more than a brother's love, and his loyal character in- spires me with the utmost confidence as to his con- duct in the event of such a great future opening to him. If, unfortunately, the King is not living to watch over my son till his majority, Helene (his wife) is not to allow her name to be brought for- ward for the regency instead of my brother Nem- ours. I have more confidence in his judgment than my own." There is no proof that the young widow did so, but there was a party who used her name, because they disliked the Due de Nemours, believing that he was too conservative. Also he was of too retir- ing and reserved disposition to be generally popular. " He was esteemed and respected, but he avoided recognition as much as most people seek it. His noble conduct during the campaigns in Africa had won the attachment of all his comrades in the army. Everywhere, and on all occasions, he did his duty and more than his duty." Although not heir to the Throne, after his brother's death, he had to fulfil the functions of that position, owing to the infancy of the Comte de Paris, and henceforth the King depended on him for everything, and would do nothing without con- sulting him. 258 THE LIFE OF MARIE AMELIE When the King opened the Chambers he was supported by four of his sons. After alluding to the calamity which had befallen him, he broke down in his address, and even those who were his enemies felt compassion and sympathy. 259 CHAPTEK XIV. Visit of Queen Victoria to France — Visit of Louis Philippe to England — Death of Madame Adelaide — Disturbed State of France — Eevolution of 1848 — Abdication and Flight of King and Queen. Europe began to see that it owed recognition to King Louis Philippe for keeping down the revolu- tionary spirit which threatened to spread to all countries ; and it was acknowledged also that his foreign policy made for peace. In 1840 Queen Vic- toria wrote to the King of the Belgians about the threatening aspect of affairs in the East: "We owe much of the change in the attitude of France to the peaceful disposition of the King, for which I feel grateful. Pray offer to him on his birthday my best and sincerest wishes for his happiness and health. May he live many years for the benefit of all Europe ! " In 1843 Queen Victoria and the Prince Consort paid a visit to the French royal family at the Chateau d'Eu, in Normandy. Eu is near Dieppe and close to the Forest of Arques. Louis Philippe had inherited it from his mother, who had inherited it from her great uncle, the Due de Maine, son of Louis XIV. It had been part of the inheritance of la Grande 260 THE LIFE OF MARIE AMELIE Mademoiselle/ who was persuaded by Mme. de Mon- tespan to bestow it on the Due de Maine, as price of the liberty of Mademoiselle's lover, Lauzun. It was the favourite country seat of the d'Orleans family. The Queen of England was enthusiastically re- ceived when she landed at Tre'port. Next day, 3rd September, 1843, a great entertainment was given in the banqueting hall of the chateau. On the 4th a fete champetre, on the Mont d'Orleans, in the Forest of Arques ; on the 5th a review. On the 7th the English royalties concluded their visit. A French orator compared the meeting of the King of the French and the Queen of England to that of Solomon and the Queen of Sheba. This visit undoubtedly improved the position of the d'Orleans dynasty, Queen Victoria being the first among the sovereigns of Europe to visit Louis Philippe on equal terms. It also strengthened the feelings of private friendship between the two royal families, already closely connected by the Belgian and Saxe-Cobourg marriages. From d'Eu, Queen Victoria wrote to her uncle: "I am writing from this dear place where we are in the midst of this truly amiable family. We feel quite at home and as if we were one of them. Our reception by the dear King and Queen has been most kind, and by the people, really gratifying." The King of the Belgians replied : "I was sure that personal contact with the family at Eu would be agreeable to you, and at the same time 1 Daughter of Gaston d'Orleans. 261 THE LIFE OF MARIE AMELIE remove some general impressions on the subject of the King, which are untrue, particularly the attempt to represent him as the most astute of men, calcu- lating constantly to deceive people. His vivacity and thoroughly French loquacity w^ould make such a system particularly difficult for him." In the following year, October, 1844, Louis Philippe returned Queen Victoria's visit, but was not accompanied by his wife, whose tender and un- ceasing solicitude for him made her nervous, for fear he should be imprudent, and risk his health on this occasion. Her daughter, the Queen of the Belgians, writing to Queen Victoria, said : " My dear mother is uneasy for fear that, being at liberty and without her at his side to remind him, my father will play the young man, ride about and do everything as if he were twenty ! If I must tell you the truth, she is afraid he will eat too much ! I am sure he will tell you this himself as he was much amused. He is naturally so imprudent, and thinks so little about himself, that he requires to be watched to prevent his doing what is injurious to himself. Though my father has sent over his horses, my mother begs you, if possible, to prevent his riding at all. He is one of the most easy beings to please, and his eventful life has used him to everything. A hard bed and a large table for papers are all that he requires in his room. Mamma has given all instructions to Toto,^ and told him to speak directly to Albert, if necessary." ' Due de Montpensier, who accompanied his father to England. 262 THE LIFE OF MARIE AMELTE In England the excitement and curiosity to see Louis Philippe was very great. He was the first French king to come on a visit to a sovereign of England. He was enthusiastically received wherever he appeared, and was installed as a Knight of the Garter at Windsor, with great magnificence. Queen Victoria wrote : " The dear King's visit went off to perfection. He was delighted. What an extraordinary man he is ! What stores of in- formation ! What a memory ! How lively ! How sagacious he is ! I am certain the visit will do great good." Unfortunately, two years later, the friendship between the two royal families greatly cooled down, owing to Louis Philippe's bad faith over the Spanish marriages. The marriage of the Queen of Spain and her sister was considered an international question. It was agreed that no son of Louis Philippe should marry the Queen, and also that no son of his should marry her sister till the Queen herself was married and had children. In defiance of this agreement, when such a husband was got for the Queen of Spain as made it improbable she would ever have chil- dren, at the same time her sister's engagement was announced to the Due de Montpensier. Queen Victoria never forgot this, though she for- gave it when misfortune overtook the French royal family and they had to seek refuge in her dominions. In January, 1848, Mdme. Adelaide, the King's sister, died. It was an irreparable loss to the royal 263 THE LIFE OF MAKIE AMELIE family. Her brother was accustomed to visit her daily, and to discuss with her, and take her opinion on all affairs of State, as well as of the family. The newspapers of the day said : " The death of Mdme. Adelaide is an important political event. Had she survived her brother, she would have taken his place as head of the family, over which she exercised great influence, owing to her powers of mind and great wealth. She would have carried on the tra- ditions of his policy ; her courage never failed, her will was never undecided." It is generally acknowledged that her death con- tributed to the fall of the d'Orleans dynasty. In the events that were about to take place, she, who always discerned the crucial point of a situation, would have advised her brother to necessary concessions or to determined resistance. There had now been many years of material pros- perity in France, and it appeared as if the people were satisfied to enjoy it, and thought only of en- riching themselves. But in reality only the surface was smooth, underneath discontent with the Govern- ment was seething. There were some who saw that the liberties and privileges for which they had fought during two or three revolutions, were gradually being diminished, that the people had really little voice in the Government, where they were represented by a body of officials entirely devoted to the King. Cor- ruption had entered into all the elections, parliament- ary purity was a byeword ; there had been several bad harvests, famine threatened the country, the 264 THE LIFE OF MARIE AMELIE budget was threatened with a deficit, and the ex- penses of the country were in excess of the income. A universal outcry arose for electoral reform. In many large provincial cities banquets were organised, nominally for the discussion of reform, which were really meetings to spread democratic ideas, and or- ganise opposition to the Government. The King and Prime Minister, Guizot, did not regard this movement as of any great importance. They placed confidence in the majority which the Government possessed in the Chambers, and in the fidelity of the army, in which the King's sons held commands, and in the motives of self-interest of all the well-to-do, to avoid change. But in February, 1848, a banquet on a vast scale was organised in Paris for the purpose of forwarding reform. The Ministry claimed the right to forbid this banquet. This involved the question of liberty to hold public meetings, which had never before been disputed. Orleanists, liberals, republicans, legitimists united in defending these rights. Heated discussions took place in the Chambers, and Guizot announced that the Government would defend its right of veto by force. The Reformers had decided to meet in front of the Madeleine and proceed to the banquet, but gave it up for fear of a massacre. However, the populace assembled in great crowds at the Madeleine, and barricades were raised. Government had called out a strong and powerful body of troops, enough, 266 THE LIFE OF MARIE AMELIE if well led, to put down any insurrection, but they were commanded only to keep order, and not to fire on the people till the last extremity. The King, with much reluctance, had agreed to announce that Guizot had resigned and a new Ministry, with Mole at its head, would be formed, thinking that this was all that was necessary to re- store peace and order. Reports reached him that the National Guard, when called out, cried: "Reform for ever!" and were interfering between the troops and the people. The King placed the utmost confidence in the National Guard, and this news amazed and con- founded him. He mounted his horse and rode out through the principal streets, but was everywhere received with silence or marks of dissatisfaction. On returning to the Tuileries an irregular council was held, interrupted every moment by new arrivals bringing contradictory reports as to the state of the capital, and progress of the insurrection. The re- placing of Guizot by Mole had had no effect. And Thiers, leader of the Opposition, and Odillon Barrot pledged themselves that if the King would make them Ministers, and order the troops to cease fir- ing on the people, the insurrection would cease at once. The following of this fatal advice led to the ruin of the King's cause and his dethronement, for more than a change of ministry was required to pacify the people of Paris. The Republicans had spent the night in organising 266 THE LIFE OF MARIE AMELIE a general rising ; the Municipal Guard alone was loyal to the King, for the regulars, disgusted at their forced inaction, and at being left for hours in the street without food or drink, were beginning, at many posts in the city, to fraternise with the mob. While the King, worn out with fatigue, lay down without undressing on a sofa, to snatch a little sleep, groups in the anti-chambers were already discussing the possibilities of his pacifying the insurrection, or the contingent necessity of his abdication. Next mornino: he awoke to hear that the mob had sacked his old ancestral home, the Palais Royal. The tocsin was sounding, news came that there had been much street fighting and many lives lost. The King was overwhelmed, so secure had he felt in his position. Marie Amelie showed herself equal to the position and endeavoured to arouse him. " Come," she said, "place yourself at the head of the troops, who are disgusted by forced inaction, rally the National Guard, who are wavering ; ^ I and our daughters and grand- children will place ourselves on the balcony, and if you fail, will see you die in a manner worthy of your- self and your Throne ! " All the Queen's pride of race and love for her husband and children con- centrated itself in this passionate appeal. In her opinion their life came second to their honour. Her white hair contrasting with the fire of her eyes and the colour of her cheeks, flushed with emotion, made her a tragic figure. 1 Subsequently they fought gallantly and were all massacred. 267 THE LIFE OF MARIE AMELIE The King asked her to trust to his wisdom and experience to know how to deal with the situation. To Marshal Bugeaud, who implored to be allowed to put the 100,000 troops at his command to action, and use force to restore order, the King replied : " I do not wish French blood to be spilled for my cause ". The day wore on, and the King, in neglige cos- tume, joined his family at dinner. The noise and uproar in the city were heard drawing nearer, and the meal was interrupted by the unceremonious en- trance of three Ministers, who exclaimed : " Sire, you must know the truth, you deceive yourself as to the safety of yourself and family. A few hundred yards from your palace your dragoons are giving their guns and swords to the mob,^ who are marching on the Tuileries." " Impossible," cried the King. " We have seen it," was the reply. The King rose from the table and went to his Cabinet, and held council with Thiers, Remusat, Lamorci^re, the Due de Montpensier and others. The Due de Montpensier took a very prominent part in the discussions, urging his father to an- nounce further concessions or to abdicate. A prolonged fusillade was heard outside, and a cannon ball struck the roof of the Tuileries. The King's apartment was crowded, indescribable con- ^ The troops had been in the street from Tuesday morning to Wednesday night without food or drink. The populace supplied their wants, and they fraternised, 268 THE LIFE OF MARIE AMELIE fusion prevailed, every one giving an opinion to which no one else listened. Members of the house- hold, the late Ministry, courtiers, councillors, officers, the Princesses and their children, had gathered there. At this crisis Emile Girardin burst uncere- moniously into the apartment, said that an immense concourse was marching on the Tuileries, and ab- dication alone could save the lives of the King and his family. Others cried : " There is not a moment to lose ". The Queen alone retained her dignity and com- posure. Having found that words had no effect, she retired into the recess of a window and looked at the King with an indignant expression, and tears in her eyes. What impulse possessed the King it is impossible to say. He was old, bewildered by the sudden and unexpected catastrophe, perhaps weary of fighting. After a short pause he said : "I will abdicate in favour of my grandson, the Comte de Paris ". The Duchesse d'Orleans threw herself on her knees and implored him not to take this step. The King seated himself at a table. The Due de Montpensier put a pen into his father's hand and urged him not to delay. Louis Philippe wrote the abdication slowly and carefully, though he afterwards said: " Eager eyes followed every word I wrote as if to hasten me, and there were cries of ' You have not a moment to lose, Sire ' ". The words written were : " I abdicate, in favour 269 THE LIFE OF MARIE AMELIE of my grandson, the Comte de Paris, the crown which the will of the nation called upon me to wear. May he, more fortunate than myself, fill for the happiness of France the high office that now devolves on him ". Having signed it, Louis Philippe pushed the paper, with an impatient gesture, towards the Due de Mont- pensier, who handed it to a Minister ; then rising, he deposited his sword and orders on the table, and joined the Queen at the window.^ The King's adherents seemed dumbfounded, but there were others who urged the necessity of his immediate departure, and would hardly allow him time to go to his room to remove his uniform and put on a plain black coat. Having done so, with the Queen on his arm, he passed slowly through the corridor to the Pavilion de I'Horloge. Louis Philippe, as a man, was personally popular. The bravest soldiers had tears in their eyes, as they pressed forward to kiss the hands of their late sove- reigns ; those who could not do this kissed some part of their clothing, sobbing. The Queen preserved her composure and dignified manner, but to Thiers '" she said : " Ah, Monsieur, you were not worthy of such a good King ! " At the door of his apartment Louis Philippe ^ Had the Due d'0rl6ans, " Chartres," been alive, this calamity would never have happened. He would have died, if necessary, defending the crown to which he was heir. He often said : " My ideas as to revolutions are well known. March straight upon the insurgents, get to the end and the bottom, and do it promptly." 2 Leader of the Opposition, prime cause of the downfall. 270 THE LIFE OF MARIE AMELIE had turned to his daughter-iu-law ^ who would have followed them, saying, "No, Helene, you must stay here ". The Due de Montpensier, Duchesse de Nemours, Princess Clementine of Saxe-Cobourg and her hus- band, six grandchildren, carried by persons of the suite, the King's aids-de-camp, many officers of the house- hold, some deputies and faithful friends followed the venerable pair as they walked slowly, escorted by the National Guard, through the garden to the terrace gate, where carriages had been ordered to await them. But there were no carriages, the mob had already burned part of the stables, killed the outriders and seized the landaus ; but one of the officers managed to get hold of two one horse broughams and a cab- riolet, and brought them to the entrance where the royal party were waiting, in a very precarious position, among a crowd every moment increasing. At this juncture Marie Am^lie's fortitude gave way, she burst into sobs, trembled, and was on the point of fainting, and the King had to lift her into the carriage which just then arrived ; he seated him- self beside her, and the rest of the party bestowed themselves in the other carriages.^ At the last moment the little Due d'Alen^on (son of Nemours) was pushed through the window on to the King's lap ; a squadron of cuirassiers cleared the way and accompanied the carriages, which set out at full gallop to St. Cloud. 1 Duchesse d' Orleans. 2 There was no room for Princess Clementine and her husband, who went on foot to the railway station and got away. 271 THE LIFE OF MARIE AMELIE The horses of two of the escort were shot at and killed en route. At the Pont des Invalides an armed band of insurgents made some attempt to stop the cortege, but retired before the determined attitude of the cuirassiers, and the fugitives arrived safely at St. Cloud. General St. Ang^ly and General Carrelet had ridden on either side of the carriage in which the King and Queen were seated ; at St. Cloud, Louis Philippe dismissed them and the escort. The parting was pathetic and emotional on both sides. Louis Philippe commanding them to go to the Due de Ne- mours, the regent, for further orders. At St. Cloud the royal family examined their resources and found that, having come away so hastily, when all pockets were turned out, altogether there was not enough money to pay for posthorses to Eu. However, the postmaster^ of Versailles was loyal and devoted, and sent the late King twenty-eight horses and said : " These are the best horses in my stable, drive them till they drop if necessary ; do not think of my loss, only save yourselves, Sire." They set out for Dreux, and arrived at nightfall. When the Prefect, who knew nothing of what had oc- curred, presented himself to inquire as to the reason of this unannounced arrival at an untimely hour, Louis Philippe said: "I am no longer King. But ^ A contrast to the postmaster at St. Menehold who stopped the flight of Louis XVI. and Marie Antoinette, sent them back to Paris and the scaffold. 272 THE LIFE OF MARIE AMELIE I trust you in my days of adversity as I did in days of prosperity. Then with much emotion and indig- nation he related all that had happened. The two officials were overwhelmed with grief ; they hastened to provide all that was necessary, borrowing from the townspeople, furniture, linen, clothing, jjlate and food, for the chateau was under repair and empty. The Sub-Prefect also provided the King with money, some hundreds of pounds, and posted a guard around the chateau for security. The King believed that his abdication would have put an end to the insurrection in Paris, and wished to wait at Dreux for news. During the night a friend of the Prefect's arrived from Paris, and an- nounced that hardly had the royal family gone, when the mob swarmed into the Tuileries, sacked and devastated it, destroying everything^ but the throne, which they carried in derision through the streets ; and that the Chambers had refused to accept the Comte de Paris and a regency, and had declared a Republic. History repeats itself. It is impossible that at this juncture Louis Philippe could have failed to realise that the fate that had overtaken him, was precisely the same as that of his predecessor, ^ Except the apartments of the Duchesse d'Orl^ans. About to enter, they were told who was the occupant, and retired with ex- pressions of respect, posting a guard to prevent further intrusion. The widowed Duchess was much touched by this proof of the affection inspired by her husband's memory, even at such a time of excitement. 273 18 THE LIFE OF MARIE AMELIE Charles X./ whose place he had taken, and by whose example he had failed to profit. The Prefect went early to give the news to Louis Philippe, who was still in bed. Marie Amdlie had regained her courage, or rather exchanged it for resignation, and contrived to console the King and soften the bitterness of this latest blow. A council was held around the King's bed, and it was agreed that the family must separate, so as to avoid attracting notice on the way, and get without delay to the coast. The King and Queen were to go by by-roads to -a friend's cottage near Honfleur, and await a chance to cross to England. The Due de Montpensier was to accompany the Duchesse de Nemours and the children to Avranches, thence by Channel Isles to England. The daughter of the Duchesse de Nemours was with the Princess Clementine of Saxe-Cobourg and her husband, who, finding no room in the carriages that conveyed the rest of the royal family from the Tuileries, had managed to make their way on foot to a railway station, and took train to Versailles, where they went straight to the Prefecture and placed themselves under the protection of the Prefect, to have them conveyed in safety to Eu, whence they found their way to England after a while. So little had she anticipated the turn that events 1 Charles X. abdicated in favour of the Due de Bordeaux, his grandson, as Louis Phihppe had done for the Comte de Paris, his grandson. 274 THE LIFE OF MARIE AMELIE would take in Paris, and the necessity of immediate flight, that Marie Am^lie had ordered and meant to attend a mass in memory of her eldest son, who lay buried in the Mausoleum of the d'Orleans family at Dreux. This intention she was unable to carry out. They decided to leave behind the carriages in which they had come to Dreux, and to borrow one from a friend there that would be less noticeable. The King shaved off his whiskers, and discarded his wig, appearing as bald as nature made him. These alterations, and a costume consisting of close cap, a cloak and goggles, were a very effectual disguise. The Queen also dressed herself in the plainest and least noticeable style. Preparations were made as quickly as possible, and when all was ready the King and Queen, M. de Eumigny the aide-de-camp, and the Queen s fevime de chambj'e, got into a closed carriage, and the Prefect, M. Marechal, mounted on the box. At Anat he was able to procure passports under a feigned name, also a further supply of money, £400. At St. Andre it was market day. The relays were not ready. Rumours spread that the hated Guizot was in the carriage. A threatening crowd assembled. Gendarmes seemed doubtful when pass- ports were presented. M. Marechal was well known in the district. He took one of the gendarmes aside and confided in him, flattered his vanity and aroused his sympathy. This man declared the passports were correct and dis- persed the crowd. 275 THE LIFE OF MARIE AMELIE At Evreux, fearing more difficulty, M. Marechal dared not take the party through the town, and drove to a farmhouse on the estate of a friend. The farmer was let into the secret, and showed good feeling and devotion. He entered warmly into M. Marechal's plans, offered his own horses, har- nessed them to the King's carriage, and drove them himself, and found a trustworthy friend to provide another vehicle and to take the Queen by another route. After driving all night on different roads the King and Queen met again at their destination, a small cottage belonging to a friend. It was hidden among trees, not far from Honfleur. Here they remained nine days, with closed shutters, only lighting a fire at night, so that smoke should not be seen and lead any one to imagine the house was inhabited. M. Lamartine denies that these precautions were necessary. He says : "At the first sitting of the Provisional Government,^ the first question that came up was the treatment of the dethroned King. The decision was unanimous that he must be protected from violence, and his private property from con- fiscation. That he was to be allowed to retire whither he willed, and as soon as his whereabouts could be discovered he was to be provided with necessary funds and suitable escort to conduct him to a place of embarkation. Lamartine was charged to carry out this office. There was placed at his disposal 300,000 francs from the Treasury and four 1 Of which he was the President. 276 THE LIFE OF MARIE AMELIE trustworthy commissioners, M. Oscar Lafayette, Fer- dinand Lasteyrie, Champonneux and Durgand, who respected the Throne and sympathised with the mis- fortunes of the dethroned King and his family, to hold themselves in readiness to start. A travelling carriage was also held in readiness. Inquiries were made of the late King's personal friends, but whether from suspicion of the motives prompting the inquiries or not, all professed complete ignorance. Meanwhile, hearing nothing of these good in- tentions, Generals Rumigny and Dumas were seeking the means of safe transit to England for the late King and Queen. The King, fearing to be recognised and arrested in Havre, went on foot to Trouville. A merchant, M. Gualtier, sheltered him for two days and advised hiring a fishing boat to take them out to sea, there to board an English steamer. The first master of a boat had suspicions and asked an exorbitant price, and was dismissed. The next applied to also suspected who the passengers might be, and offered his boat gratuitously, and it was thankfully accepted. The first, however, in revenge for the refusal of his boat, spread reports in the town that the King was there in hiding. Hearing of these rumours, Louis Philippe left the merchant's house and went alone on foot, through mud and rain on a dark night back to the cottage where the Queen was hidden. A young naval officer, M. Bresson, at Havre, heard rumours which led him to put the English Consul into communication with the King. 277 THE LIFE OF MARIE AMELIE The captain of an English steamer going from Southampton to Havre was asked if he would take on board passengers approaching him in a fishing boat some distance from shore. He refused, but com- municated these overtures to the Admiralty. Lord Palmerston in consequence wrote to the British Con- suls at all the northern ports of France to do all they could to help the King to cross. The result of these orders could not be better told than by transcribing the letter written by Mr. Featherstonhaugh, British Consul at Havre, to Lord Palmerston, who afterwards remarked that it equalled the best of Walter Scott's tales. " Havre, 3rd March, 1848. " My dear Lord Palmerston, it was a hair-trigger affair altogether, but thanks be to God everything has gone off admirably. I was obliged to abandon the plan of trusting the King in a fishing boat from Trouville. Had he attempted to find the steamer he might have failed, the weather was very stormy, the sea in a furious state, and the wind ahead, so there was also the danger of the fishing boat being lost. " I therefore abandoned the plan, and after much and careful reflection determined to execute one more within my control, and the boldness of which though trying to the nerves was its very essence of success. It was to bring the King and Queen into Havre itself before anybody could suspect such a dangerous in- tention and have everything ready for their embarka- 278 THE LIFE OF MARIE AMELIE tion to a minute. To carry out the plan I wanted vigilant, intelligent and firm agents and I found them. "It was known to me that the lower classes sus- pected that it was M. Guizot who was in hiding at Trouville, and as some sinister occurrence might be expected there, I sent a faithful person into Calvados. It was high time. " The mob had assembled at the house where the King was, who had to slip out at the back door and walk two leagues till he reached the cottage near Honfleur where the Queen was. " At half- past six yesterday morning my agent saw the King and Queen, who after some conversation sent him back to me with this message : ' That they would wait where they were until they heard again from me, and would carry out my final arrangements with exactitude as far as it depended on them '. I now instructed Captain Paul to be ready at half-past seven p.m. when it would be dark, to have his water hot, ready to get up steam ; to have only a rope moored to the quay with an anchor astern ; to expect me with a party a little before eight p.m., and as soon as I had got on board with my party and told him to push off", he was to let me go on shore, cut his rope and cable, get into the middle of the basin, up with his steam and jib and push for England. " Not a word was to be spoken on board. To get the King here from Honfleur, the following method was adopted : M. Bresson, a loyal and intelligent officer in the French navy, well known to the King, 279 THE LIFE OF MARIE AMELIE and Mr. Jones, my vice-consul, went in the steam ferry- boat at a quarter to five to Honfieur. From the landing place it is three-quarters of a mile to the place where the King and Queen were concealed. The ferry- boat was to leave Honfieur for Havre at a quarter before seven. I had given M. Bresson a passport for Mr. and Mrs. Smith, and with this passport the King was to walk to the landing place, where he was to be met by my vice-consul and be governed by him. If the gendarmes disputed the passport, Mr. Jones was to vouch for its regularity and say I had sent him to conduct my uncle, Mr. Smith, to Havre. M. Bres- son was to follow with the Queen, and the suite were to come to the ferry-boat one after another, but were not to know each other. The ferry-boat was to arrive at Havre at half-past seven, a white handkerchief was to be twice exhibited as a signal that all was right so far. The difficulty with the gendarmes being infinitely more to be apprehended and provided against here than there. I first confidentially communicated to the great- est gossips in the town that I had seen a written state- ment from an official person that the King had reached England in a fishing boat from Treport, and I then got some persons whom I could rely upon, sons of my tradesmen here, who are in the National Guard, to be near the steamer that was to receive the King, to give me their assistance if it should be necessary on account of the turbulence of the crowd, to embark some friends of mine who were going to England. And if an extj-aordinary number of gendarmes were stationed at the steamer and made a difficulty about 280 THE LIFE OF MARIE AMELIE letting my uncle go on board, then about 100 yards off' I had two persons who were to pretend a (juarrel and begin a fight, to which I knew the gendarmes and the crowd would go at once. But I hoped that as Captain Paul made no noise with his steam, no crowd or extra gendarmes would assemble. The anxiously expected moment then arrived. The ferry-boat came to the quay, and though it was dark I distinguished the white handkerchief. There was a great number of passengers, which favoured the debarcation. When half of them were out, the trembling Queen came up the ladder. I took her hand, telling her who I was, and M. Bresson walked with her towards our steamer. **At last came the King, disguised, his whiskers shaved off", a sort of casquette on his head and immense goggles over his eyes, and wearing a coarse overcoat. Not being able to see well, he stumbled, so I advanced, took his hand and said : ' Ah, dear uncle, I am delighted to see you ', upon which he answered : * My dear George, I am glad you are here '. The English about me now opened the crowd for their consul and his uncle, and I moved off to a quiet, shaded part of the quay. But my uncle talked so loud and so much that I had the greatest difficulty to make him keep silence. At length we reached the steamer ; it was like a clockwork movement, the crowd was again opened before me. I conducted the King to a state-room below, gave him some in- formation, and having personally ascertained that the Queen was in her cabin, and being very much touched 281 THE LIFE OF MARIE AMELIE with her tears and grateful acknowledgments, I re- spectfully took leave, gave the captain word to cut loose, and scrambled ashore. In twenty minutes the steamer was outside, steaming away for England. I drove down to the jetty and had the last satisfaction of seeing her beyond the possibility of recall, and then drove home. Information has just reached me that one hour after the King and Queen left their hiding place, the cottage, last night, and just as I was embarking them, an officer and three gendarmes went to the cottage to arrest him. They were sent by the new Republican Prefect.^ It appears that the merchant who had given him shelter at Trouville, betrayed his place of retreat at Honfleur. What an escape ! Here no one has any proof. Only four of us were in the secret, and we know nothing of Louis Philippe, only of Mr. Smith. People are much mystified, many suspect, but almost every one is delighted to think the King may have escaped. '* I have the honour to be, etc., ''G. W. Featherstonhaugh." After a terribly rough passage the King and Queen arrived safely at Newhaven. When Louis Philippe set foot on shore he exclaimed: "Thank God ! I am on British ground ! " They drove to a little inn, where the landlady received them so kindly ^ Lamartine said the Prefect must have acted on his own initiative. The Provisional Government had given no such orders, and were ignorant of it. 282 THE LIFE OF MARIE AMELIE and respectfully that they were quite touched, and though many persons came to pay their respects, and better accommodation was offered, they determined not to move till they received answers to letters addressed to the Queen of England. 283 CHAPTER XV. Arrival of the King and Queen in England, followed by that of other Members of the Family — Their Adventures en route — Kindness of Queen Victoria, who gives them a Eesidence at Claremont — Life at Claremont — Opinion of Europe as to Abdication — Death of Louis Philippe — Marie Amelie's Visits to the Continent — Her Meeting with the Comte de Chambord — Death of the Duchesse de Nemours — Celebration of Marie Amelie's seventy-fifth Birthday. On arriving at Newhaven the whole party were un- provided with anything but the clothes they wore, and General Dumas had to go at once to London to interview the King's banker. The King's first care was to write to Queen Victoria and ask for a place of refuge for himself and Marie Amelie, as Comte and Comtesse de Neuilly. Marie Amelie also wrote to the Queen, as fol- lows: — " Newhaven, Srd March, 1848. ** Having arrived on these hospitable shores, after nine days of agony, my first thought, after returning thanks to Providence, is to thank your Majesty from the bottom of my heart, for the facilities placed at our disposal, to enable us to come to this country to pass our old age in tranquillity and oblivion. 284 THE LIFE OF MARIE AMELIE " I am tormented with anxiety to know what has befallen my dear children, from whom we were obliged to separate ; I feel confidence that your Majesty's generous heart has come to their assist- ance, and that they have been saved, as their ad- mirable father, my chief treasure, has been. " May God bless you, Madame, as well as Prince Albert and your children, and preserve you from mis- fortunes such as ours ; this is the sincere wish of one who is, Madame, entirely devoted to your Majesty. " (Signed) Marie Am^ie. ' ' Queen Victoria hastened to answer both letters in the kindest terms, and in concurrence with the King of the Belgians, to place Claremont at their dis- posal as a residence. Claremont was an appanage of the Crown, and had been granted to Prince Leopold of Saxe-Cobourg for life, on his first marriage to the Princess Charlotte of Wales. The ex-King and Queen went at once to Clare- mont. On their journey great respect was shown wherever they were recognised, everybody taking off their hats. Shortly afterwards Lord Malmesbury went to visit them. He records in his journal : '' We went to Claremont to pay our respects to the exiled sovereigns. We were shown into the drawing-room. Mme. de Montjoie^ came in at once and said, the King and Queen were busy writing ; however, in a few minutes they entered. They were looking well in health but 1 Marie Amelie's lady-in-waiting and lifelong friend. 285 THE LIFE OF MARIE AMELIE in wretchedly low spirits ; the King in particular could hardly hold up his head." The Prince Consort, on behalf of the Queen, went down to Claremont on the 7th of March ; the ex- King and Queen visited Queen Victoria at Buckingham Palace. She wrote to her uncle ; " They both look very dejected, and the poor Queen cried much in thinking of what she had gone through, and what dangers the King had incurred ; in short, humbled, poor people they looked." Amidst the sympathy evoked by the downfall of Louis Philippe, rightly or wrongly, the idea of Ne- mesis obtruded itself : that his fate was identical with that from which he had not saved his predecessor Charles X.^ The King of Prussia wrote to Queen Victoria : " The fate of the poor old King and the whole honour- able and respectable family cuts me to the heart. We owe Louis Philippe eighteen happy years of peace. No noble heart must forget that. And yet, who would not recognise the avenging hand of the King of Kings in all this ? " There was also a general feeling that the abdi- cation had been precipitate and premature. Members of the family felt that had the Due dAumale or Prince de Joinville been in France a bolder policy would have been followed. The immense body of troops at the King's disposal only needed a leader, and the Due d'Aumale also was in Algeria at the head of a 1 For Marie Am61ie the greate3t sympathy, and also admiration, was felt by all. 286 THE LIFE OF MARIE AMELIE large army entirely devoted to him, who burned to be allowed to return to France to fight for his dynasty. He showed great patriotism in not yielding to their entreaties, being desirous to avoid civil war, but neither he nor the King's abdication prevented that ; the sacrifice was unavailing. Under the name of the Republic, complete anarchy reigned in France, and in the terrible strife that ensued more lives were lost than in any of Napoleon's battles, and the number of generals who perished exceeded those cut off at Boro- dino or Waterloo. The Prince de Joinville would not have let his father relinquish the crown without a blow, but he had foreseen that a struggle was imminent and tried to open his father's eyes in vain. He said that the people were tired of the Government, that the rest- less nature of the French people made them welcome any and all changes. Certain it is that they were now bent on ruining all the prosperity that had been built up during eighteen years of peace, and trying in succession various forms of Government, without changing the French temperament, and thus alienat- ing the confidence of foreign nations in the stability of any French Government.^ After the departure of the King and Queen from the Tuileries the Duchesse d'Orleans and her two little boys, Comte de Paris and Due de Chartres, escorted by the Due de Nemours, went to the Chamber ^ Lord John Eussell remarked : " If neither Napoleon nor Louis PhiUppe consolidate a dynasty in France, who will ever be able to doit? 287 THE LIFE OF MARIE AMELIE of Deputies to claim protection, which was granted, though the Chamber refused to recognise the rights of the Comte de Paris or the regency of the Due de Nemours. The poor children enjoyed the spectacle as if they were at a play, and when the assembly applauded M. Cremieux's speech refusing to consent to the regency, the young King (Comte de Paris) seeing a great number of people clapping their hands, did the same. Thus his little hands applauded the measure which dethroned him ; a touching sight, which did not pass unnoticed even at such a time of excitement. During the Sitting an armed mob forced their way into the Chamber, and the Deputies formed themselves into a hed^e round the Duchess and her children. Finally, fresh inroads of bloodthirsty ruffians made it necessary for her to retire. She and her children were almost crushed to death by the crowd and trampled under foot, and were separated from each other and from the Due de Nemours. M. de Mornay managed to convey the Duchesse d'Orleans and Comte de Paris (who had been picked up and restored to her by a National Guard) to the Invalides, and then to the Castle of Ligny a few leagues out of Paris. The other child, Chartres, had been rolled on the ground and trampled on by the crowd ; he was rescued by the devotion of two Alsatian ushers of the Assembly and was re- stored after three days to his mother at Ligny, from thence friends escorted them to the railway at Lille, and they arrived safely at Ems on the 288 THE LIFE OF MARIE AMELIE Rhine, where the mother of the Duchesse d'OrMans resided. The rest of the royal family, by various routes and after various adventures, found their way to England and Claremont. The Duchesse de Montpensier encountered many difficulties and had hairbreadth escapes, and displayed a coolness and courage that excited the warmest admiration of her escorts, M. Estancelin and General Thierry. The Princess Clementine of Saxe-Cobourg and her husband and children went to stay at Buckingham Palace ; Queen Victoria also invited the Nemours, but visits were exchanged only, the Nemours remaining at the embassy until they found a cottage at East Sheen, for the Due de Nemours shrank from publicity. All enmity between England and Louis Philippe's projects as King ceased with his deposition, and the Ministers approved of every assistance and kindness being shown to the exiles, by the Queen, as her relatives and friends in their private capacity, though it would be necessary for England to recognise any new government that could be established in France. France being in a state of confusion, it was im- possible for Louis Philippe to get possession of his property, and for some time the family were in pecu- niary straits. But eventually he recovered his property. Any attempts at the confiscation of Louis Philippe's pri- vate property were steadily repulsed by the Provi- sional Government and its successors. The Assemblv V 289 19 THE LIFE OF MARIE AMELIE of 28th October, 1848, had issued a decree for the res- stitution of all the real estate and personal property of the d'Orleans family. An administrator of approved loyalty, M. E. Bocher, was appointed, and the liqui- dation of the civil list was carried out in the most honourable and regular manner, and even the arrears of the dowry of the Duchesse d'Orle'ans were paid with exactness. It is believed that Louis Philippe re- ceived about £1,000,000 sterling. He himself, though accused of avarice, had saved nothing, having ex- pended his large revenues on works of public utility and in restoring and embellishing the national pal- aces, the Tuileries, St. Cloud, Meudon, Versailles and Fontainebleau. Although their property was restored, an act was passed exiling all members of the d'Orleans family, and prohibiting their setting foot on French soil. How bitterly this was felt can be well imagined. Claremont^ is a large square building, with a Grecian peristyle, situated in a fine park, with fine views of the Thames and surrounding county of Surrey. It is a spacious house, and was able to ac- commodate the ex-King and Queen and the Due and Duchesse de Nemours and their children, as well as the Prince and Princess de Joinville and their children. The Due and Duchesse dAumale took a house at Twickenham. The Duchesse d'Orle'ans and her sons remained in Germany till 1850, when they took a house at Esher, near Claremont. Louis Philippe only survived his abdication two ^ Now occupied by the Duchess of Albany. 290 THE LIFE OF MAKTE AMELIE years, and died at Claremont on 26th August, 1850, aged seventy-seven. He died a Christian's death, receiving the Communion and extreme unction, sur- rounded by his sons and daughters and his eleven grandchildren. He himself had said : " The world will not do me justice till I am dead ". Posterity has realised the many fine qualities of his complex character, and the services he rendered to Europe in combating revolutionary forces. It was intimated to Queen Marie Amelie that the use of Claremont would be granted to her for her life, so she continued to live there with her children and grandchildren, showing admirable courage, res- ignation and self-control, and being the link which united the whole family. She was to survive her husband for sixteen years. The Due de Nemours was ever the Queen's right hand, and the little Court who had followed the family into exile remained ever faithful ; death alone removed them. Prominent among them were the Generals de Chabannes and de Dumas, the wife of the former, and the Marquises de Beauvoir and Lasteyrie, and the tutors and governesses of the de Nemours and de Joinville children, and M. Trognon, formerly tutor and then secretary to Prince de Joinville ; also the Abbe Guelle, formerly vicar of the Madeleine. At Claremont he fulfilled the office of almoner, and taught the catechism to the Queen's grandchildren, and prepared them for their first communion, religion being in Marie Amelie's opinion the foundation-stone of education. 291 THE LIFE OF MARIE AMELIE The Nemours children were brought up on Spartan lines, early rising, cold tubs,^ plain food, a very severe course of horsemanship and gymnastics and swimming exercises, calculated to make them in every respect fearless. AH the royal grandchildren were brought up to remember, first of all, that they were Frenchmen. France was the theme of the daily conversation they heard among their elders, and every boy and girl had to have the geography of France and the chief events in its history at their finger-ends, as well as the gene- alogy of the French royal family. Many visitors from France came to Claremont, some for a few days, some for a few hours. Former officers of the household, old generals, diplomats, politicians, literary men, old friends like Raoul de Montmorency (a great favourite of Marie Amelie), Ehilippe de Rohan Chabot, Anatole de Montesquieu, and others, too many to enumerate. Doctor Henri de Mussy was a very valued mem- ber of the circle. He had thought to come to Eng- land for a short time, but yielding to the pressing requests of Marie AmeHe, he remained for twenty- three years the family doctor, and (as the Comte de Paris stated in his will) " their friend, comforter and counsellor." Surrounded by the love and veneration of old friends and adherents, and with the varied interests of her children and grandchildren to occupy her mind, Marie Amelie could never feel dull or lonely. 1 " Le r6gime de I'eponge d'eau glac6e." 292 THE LIFE OF MARIE AMELIE Three months after the death of her husband she had to submit to another sorrow, the death of her specially loved daughter, the Queen of the Belgians, Marie Amelie had the consolation of being able to go to Brussels to be with her daughter in her last hours, then returned to Claremont. Her sons and daughters-in-law had borne their reverse of fortune in the most praiseworthy manner. Queen Victoria wrote : " Really, the three Rrincesses are astonishing and a beautiful lesson to every one. They are so much admired and respected for it. My beloved Vic,^ with her lovely face, is perfection, and so cheerful. She often comes to see me, which is a great pleasure to me." The Revolution of '48 spread throughout Europe ; Austria, Germany, Prussia and Italy were convulsed, Switzerland in the throes of an internecine struggle. Only Belgium and England remained unaffected, but the occupiers of both thrones felt the insecure position of royalty nevertheless. The King of the Belgians remarks : " The posi- tion of what is called royalty has of late become ex- tremely difficult. They are more calumniated, and judged with less indulgence than private individuals. The transition from sovereign power to absolute want has been as frequent as sudden. When I look at my poor children, I feel their future existence is on the cards." -^ ^ Duchesse de Nemours, 2 One, the Princess Charlotte, became the unfortunate Empress of Mexico, whose husband, Maximihan, was executed. 293 THE LIFE OF MARIE AMELIE Queen Victoria in reply wrote : " Since February, the ^Revolution of '48, I feel an uncertainty in every- thing existing which I never felt before. When one thinks of one's children and their future I say to myself : * Let them grow up fit for whatever station they may be placed in, high or low '. Things one would have complained of bitterly some months ago now seem trifles, provided one can keep one's position in quiet ! " Marie Amelie may sometimes have felt a sense of security and peace at Claremont, at all events the worst was behind her, not still on the cards. Her influence was paramount in the little colony at Clare- mont. She reigned there as completely as she had ever done at the Tuileries. Sons, daughters-in-law, grandchildren, the household, all were the objects of her solicitude. Her demeanour was a lesson in itself. Dignity that was not without grace, supreme dis- tinction, perfect affability, kindness, an instinctive tone of authority all declared the true Queen. A word from her to a child had more effect than severe reprimands or punishments. Her religion was a love- able religion. An old general of the Algerian wars was influenced by her to resume the practice of re- ligious observance, and came to the Communion table in the Claremont Chapel with tears in his eyes. When her grandchildren grew older she set aside an hour daily to spend with them, and they never forgot her sayings and the advice then given to them. Those who saw her pray or receive the Sacraments, or heard her speak on some solemn subject, were 294 THE LIFE OF MARIE AMELIE deeply impressed, and used to call her " the saintly Queen ". Every year she brought over French priests to hold Retreats at Claremont before Christmas and Easter, and she used to drive over to Kingston to attend Vespers at the Roman Catholic Church. In this church the Due d'Alen^on and Princess Frances d'Orleans, daughter of Prince de Joinville made their first Communion, and here also the latter was married to her cousin, the Due de Chartres, in 1863, and the Comte de Paris in 1864 to his cousin. Princess Isa- bella, daughter of the Due de Montpensier. On Sundays the Due d'Aumale always drove his wife and children over from Twickenham to Clare- mont for the Sunday Mass, and remained to dinner. The Queen used to hear Mass every morning at 8 o'clock, the long gallery parallel to the principal facade having been turned into a chapel. After Mass the Due de Nemours would come to her room, bring- ing the Times or some other English papers, and read out the most interesting news to her. It could hardly have been without some bitter reflections that they read of Louis Napoleon's assumption of the Imperial title in France, and of the visits subsequently ex- changed between the Emperor and Empress and Queen Victoria, and of the Emperor's enthusiastic reception in England, where not many years previous the same friendship and public enthusiasm had been shown to Louis Philippe. At all events a sense of the small value of political friendships or general popu- larity must have been brought home to them, and 295 THE LIFE OF MARIE AMELIE this feeling must have been enhanced when Napoleon HI. confiscated the whole of the property of the d'Orleans family in France. In 1852 he issued a decree announcing that no member of that family could hold property in France, and that all they possessed must be sold within a year, and that all the private estates of the House of Orleans, which Louis Philippe had settled on his children, were to revert to the State, though they had not been derived from the State. Eloquent protests against this spoliation were made in the Chamber, in which tribute was paid to the fine qualities of Marie Amelie's sons and their patriotism, but all was of no avail, and several ministers resigned office as a sign of disapproval.^ Queen Marie Amelie had never encouraged in her family any hope of recovering the Throne of France. If she hoped for any restoration, it was for that of the elder branch, of which the Comte de Chambord (Due de Bordeaux), her great-nephew, was the repre- sentative. She desired a fusion between the two branches of the Bourbons. She often said : " I have occupied two stations in life, the first, as Queen, and the second, when Duchesse d'Orleans. Believe me, the second is the best ! " ^ Louis Napoleon's own position was most precarious. When he proposed to Mile. Montijo, he said : " You see the advantages of the position, it is my duty to point out the dangers. You will be beside me when attempts are made (as undoubtedly they will) to assassinate me. Conspiracies are life in the army ; to prevent an explosion I must go to war, which may ruin me. You see the chances of misfortune are quite equal to those of good fortune." 296 THE LIFE OF MARIE AMELIE The widowed Duchesse d'OrMans did not share these ideas, and thought it her duty to uphold the interests of her son, the Comte de Paris. In 1853 the Due de Nemours was sent to Frohs- dorf to obtain an interview with the Comte de Cham- bord and discuss the advantages of a fusion. At that time his mother was in Spain with the Due and Duchesse de Montpensier ^ who made their home at the Palais de St. Telmo at Seville, where the Duke had arranged a set of apartments for his mother, which communicated with the chapel. There she received a letter from the Due de Nemours telling her that his interview with the Comte de Chambord had passed off successfully. In reply she wrote : " Seville, 1st December, 1853. Mon cher, bien aime ami. I cannot tell you how great my delight was at the contents of your letter. My first impulse was to go to my prayer-desk in the chapel and return thanks to God. All the details that you give me of this re- conciliation, the accomplishment of which has been for so long the object of my desires, fill me with joy, especially as I know that it is in accordance with the wishes and intentions of your beloved father. *' I am glad you met the Emperor and Empress (Austria) and am much touched by the messages they sent me, and also by those from the Comte de Cham- bord." The first step towards reconciliation had come from the Comte de Chambord, who on the death of ^ As Infanta of Spain, the i Duchesse de Montpensier had a large fortune. 297 THE LIFE OF MARIE AMELIE Louis Philippe had ordered and attended a Memorial Service in his honour, at Wiesbaden where he was then staying, and had sent his condolences to Marie Amelie. A common misfortune had perhaps obliter- ated any rancour he might have retained towards Louis Philippe, as usurper of his rights. To the Duchesse d'Orl^ans, Marie Amelie wrote : '* As you do not mention the Frohsdorf visit, I con- clude you wish nothing to be said between us on the subject. I respect your feelings, though you have long known that our opinions differ on this subject. I only hope it will make no difference in your affection for me. I love you as I have always done." The Duchesse d'Orleans was deeply hurt at what she thought an abandonment of the recognition of her son's claims ; but nevertheless this clouded only for a time her affectionate relations with her mother- in-law and brothers-in-law. The cold English winters did not suit Marie Amelie ; she made trips to many English watering places. In 1854 she went to Italy ; at Comigliano she was taken dangerously ill. After a while she was moved to Nervi, but in spite of a spacious house amidst orange groves, on the shores of the Mediter- ranean, balmy air and lovely surroundings, it was long before she recovered strength. The Nemours and Clementine of Saxe-Cobourg were with her, and at one time her situation was so critical that her sons d'Aumale and de Joinville were summoned ; but eventually she recovered, and was able to receive a visit from her great-nephew, the Comte de Chambord, 298 THE LIFE OF MARIE AMELIE which must have aroused many conflicting emotions and revived many old memories. Although friendly and cordial relations ensued, it was found that the political ideas of the two branches were not com- patible, and no compact was entered into. However, the Comte de Chambord always retained feelings of respect and attachment for Marie Am^lie, and when he came to England for the Great Exhibition of 1862, he did not fail to pay her a visit. She was then at Tunbridge Wells, and none of her sons were present. On the 26th April, 1857, there was a great family gathering at Claremont for the celebration of Marie Am^lie's seventy-fifth birthday. One who was pre- sent, M. Allaire, tutor of the Due de Chartres, com- ments as follows : *' It was a beautiful sight to see Queen Marie Amelie in the midst of her sons, all of whom were distinguished either for their bravery and glorious exploits, or their intelligence and talents ; and of the Princesses, her daughters and daughters- in-law, who had come from so many different countries, but were all united by their common love for and devotion to the Queen. The troop of grandsons and daughters were delighted to meet each other and to obtain the approving smile of 'Grandmamma de France '. After so many troubles and vicissitudes, it was almost a surprise to the elders to find themselves really happy and content." The same autumn a deep sorrow came to Marie Amelie and her best loved son. The Duchesse de Nemours died quite suddenly at her toilette, a few 299 THE LIFE OF MARIE AMELIE days after her confinement. The details of the grief of her husband and children are very pathetic. Queen Victoria wrote : " The venerable Queen v^ith the motherless children around her, v^^as ad- mirable in her deep grief and her pious resignation to the Will of God ; the support and comfort of all, thinking only of others and ready to devote her remaining years and strength to her grandchildren ". 300 CHAPTEK XV I. Death of Duchesse de Nemours and Duchesse d'0rl6ans — Marie Am^lie's Interest in the Education of her Grandchildren — Her Grandsons enter the Spanish Army — Field Sports at Claremont — The Eoyal Choir — The Princes go to America and Take Part in the Civil War — Marriages in the Family — Last Illness and Death of the Queen — Notes on the Subsequent Fate of her Descendants. The French newspapers had some very sympathetic notices on the death of the Duchesse de Nemours, who had been universally loved and admired in France, and Queen Victoria did everything in her power to show her love and sympathy. She carried on a close correspondence with the Duke, which shows the real interest she took in him and his child- ren, and also in his brothers and nephews.^ The following year another sorrow befell the family, the death at Richmond, July, 1857, of the Duchesse d'Orleans. Marie Amelie's tenderness for the two young sons of the Duchess was redoubled ; when they were away she wrote constantly to them. The second son, ^ These letters were found among the Due de Nemours' papers at his death, when only this correspondence ended. His son re- stored them to the Queen. 301 THE LIFE OF MARIE AMELIE Chartres, was admitted to the military college at Turin, passed his examinations successfully, and was, to his great joy, allowed to accompany the Sardinian army on the Italian campaign, and fight side by side with French soldiers. In 1859 the Comte d'Eu, Gaston d'Orleans, eldest son of the Due de Nemours, obtained a commis- sion in the Spanish army, and made a campaign in Algeria. His younger brother, Due d'Alencon, was placed as a scholar in the High School at Edinburgh ; his cousin, the Due de Penthievre, was there also, and on Sundays Prince de Conde, the eldest son of Due d'Aumale, who had a residence in the neighbour- hood, took them out to dinner. Though so distant, their grandmother took an interest in all that con- cerned them, and wrote constantly. One letter is extant in which she said : ** The 2nd of the month is the Feast of Purification. If you do not feel in yourselves fitting dispositions to have the happiness of approaching the Holy Table, I wish you to go to Confession in order to put yourselves right with God,, and get strength to live a good life." The daily life at Claremont was quiet and mon- otonous, though on hunting days the Queen was always in a state of anxiety. All the d'Orleans Princes delighted in field sports, but following the fox across country, English fashion, is not without risks, and a fair share of accidents befell them. We hear of the Comte de Paris breaking his leg,, the Due de Nemours a wrist, and it is not surprising 302 THE LIFE OF MARIE AMELIE that the sailor Prince de Joinville, when on one oc- casion his liorse refused a fence, fell on his head and escaped serious consequences by a miracle. The three brothers kept a pack of harriers, and also hunted with the Surrey stag-hounds, and were very popular with their neighbours in consequence. The Queen was unable in her later years to leave the house in winter, and her sons and daughters, who entered heartily into any plan that might give her pleasure, occupied themselves with forming a choir for the better performance of the services in the chapel. The Due de Montpensier presented an organ. General de Chabannes played it, and acted as choirmaster. The Duchesse d'Aumale sang solos, and the household formed the body of the choir, well supported by the Due d'Aumale, who had a fine bass voice. There are people living who have a vivid re- membrance of the great drawing-room on the left of the entrance hall at Claremont. It was uphol- stered in yellow damask. At one end was a large round table, where the household sat reading French newspapers, with which it was loaded ; at the other end was another table at which Marie Amelie would sit reading or working or talking to any one she might have invited to sit beside her. In 1861 the Prince de Joinville, the Comte de Paris and Due de Chartres went to America and took part in the Civil War raging between North and South, fighting in the United States army under General McClellan, whose encomiums they won. 303 THE LIFE OF MARIE AMELIE After their return to England their marriages took place.^ That of the Comte de Paris to his cousin, Isa- bella, daughter of the Due de Montpensier, was some- thing of a function. Several Princes of the English royal family, as well as a considerable number of friends and well-wishers from all parts of France, attended the ceremony, which took place at Kingston on 30th May, 1864. The inhabitants of Kingston and the district, where the d'Orleans were well known and beloved, decorated the town and did all they could to honour the occasion. The marriage of the Due de Chartres to the daughter of Prince de Joinville, had not attracted so much notice ; the elder brother, the Comte de Paris, being the head of the House of d'Orleans, and by many still recognised as rightful heir to the Crown of France. In 1864 Comte d'Eu, Gaston d'Orleans, eldest son of the Due de Nemours went to Brazil. There he married the Infanta Isabella, eldest daughter of the Emperor Pedro II. and heiress to the Throne of Brazil. The conditions of this marriage were that Gaston d'Orleans should renounce his nationality as a Frenchman and become a nationalised (or natural- ised) Brazilian, and reside in Brazil. His rights as eldest son of the Due de Nemours consequently devolved on his younger brother, the Due d'Alencon, to whom, two days after the celebration of his brother's marriage at Rio Janeiro, Marie Amelie 1 See p. 295. 304 THE LIFE OF MARIE AMELIE wrote : " People congratulate us, but in reality it has been a great sacrifice, especially to your father. This marriage which has deprived us of Gaston/ places new duties on your shoulders, as chief of the family after your father. Endeavour to fit yourself to fulfil them, and to be a comfort to your father and a pro- tector to your sister. Study carefully the history of France, and remember that uprightness and loyalty are the best political principles." The Due d'Alengon entered the Spanish army ; he subsequently married a Bavarian Princess (sister of the Empress of Austria) who met her death in the terrible fire at the Bazaar de la Charite in Paris, 1897. The Due d'Alengon's journal giving an account of his voyage to the Philippines with Spanish troops was one of the last things read to his grandmother, which she listened to with interest. In January, 1866, her strength began visibly to fail. A cough prevented her sleeping, but still she did not keep her bedroom, and occasionally went out driving. In March, Pere Didon came from Paris for the annual Retreat which the Queen caused to be held before Easter. On Passion Sunday, 18th March, she drove out with Mme. de Chabannes, on Wednesday she played whist in the drawing-room. Thursday she remained ^In 1865 Comte d'Eu was allowed by the Emperor to visit England, and present his wife to Queen Marie Amelie and the rest of his family, 305 20 THE LIFE OF MARIE AMELIE in her bedroom. The Due d'Alenyon's journal ar- rived, and she enjoyed hearing it. On Friday she wrote a birthday letter to his brother Gaston in Brazil, the last letter she ever vs^rote. She also re- ceived visits in her room from the Chabannes, who were leaving, from Fere Didon, M. Trognon, and the Princesse de Joinville, but being tired went to bed at five o'clock. Dr. Mussy visited her, but discovered no alarming symptoms. However, next morning when the Due de Nemours entered her room, he perceived that she was much weaker, and in fact sinking. She roused herself to say a few words, and then sank into a kind of stupor. All of the family who were at Claremont, the Due de Nemours and his daughter, Princesse Mar- guerite, the Due and Duchesse de Chartres, the Princesse de Joinville, and the household gathered around her bed. Marie Am^lie was able to press their hands, but never spoke again. Pere Didon administered extreme unction and recited the prayers for the dying, and by ten o'clock she had breathed her last, peacefully and without any struggle or sign of suffering. She had attained the age of eighty-two. Writing to inform his son of the event, the Due de Nemours said : " The Queen is no more. We have lost that dear mother who was reverenced as a kind of Divinity in our family. It is a great blow to all of us, but we have the consolation of knowing that the sorrows and trials of her life are at last over, and that she has entered into the enjoyment of the eternal 306 THE LIFE OF MARIE AMELIE happiness which her great virtues must have won for her, and that she passed away without pain." The following day, Kalm Sunday, Queen Victoria and two of her daughters (who are now Princess Christian and the Duchess of Argyll), came to Clare- mont, wishing to take a last look at the venerable Queen whom they had so greatly loved and admired. She was still a noble figure, lying on her death- bed, with her white hair beautifully arranged under her widow's cap, and she was clothed in the robe she had worn when leaving France after the abdication. She had it preserved expressly for this purpose. Some years previous she had said to the Due de Nemours : " Remember ! When I die, you are to put on my tomb : — " Here lies ** Marie Amelie de Bourbon, Duchesse d'Orleans." "But, chere Majeste," repHed her son, "you can- not efface history." Marie Amelie raised her arm with a tragic gesture and said : " Alas ! to my sorrow. Queen of the French". The coffin of Marie Am^ie rested in the chapel of the cemetery at Weybridge, beside those of her hus- band, her daughter-in-law, the Duchesse d'Orleans, and others of the family who had died in exile, and it was not till 1876 that they were removed to Dreux.^ ^ The remains of the Duchesse de Nemours were not removed, but rest at Weybridge, under the beautiful tomb executed by Chapu. 307 THE LIFE OF MARIE AMELIE The mausoleum of the d'Orleans family at Dreux is on a hill. The windows are filled with beautiful stained glass, executed at Sevres, and all around are statues of members of the family. King Louis Philippe stands upright in the midst of them all ; Marie Am^lie kneels at his feet in a beautiful pose. There is a sublime and peaceful beauty in all those exquisite white marble people, resting there under the slanting rainbow sun-rays from the magnificent windows. Claremont reverted to the English Crown after the death of Marie Amelie, and after the funeral ceremony the Due de Nemours, writing to his son, said : "I am entirely absorbed in the task of carrying out the wishes of our dear Queen with regard to her belongings at Claremont. All the familiar objects on which our eyes were accustomed to rest have been dispersed, among them things that had been saved from the shipwreck of 1848. Some are going to Seville, others as far as Brazil, and all that goes to the three female branches will be lost to the House of Orleans. I have been seeing Claremont dismembered piece by piece, until for us it no longer exists. It has been a great strain." By order of Queen Victoria, the room in which the Duchesse de Nemours died was left untouched. Up to the present day everything remains as it was when she occupied it. In the grounds at Claremont ^ the mock fortifications, by means of which the Nemours chil- ' The Duchess of Albany now resides at Claremont, 308 THE LIFE OF MARIE AMELTE dren were taught the art of war, still exist, and these mementos of the sojourn of the French royal family still excite interest. As the Due de Nemours was oblii^red to leave Claremont after the death of his mother. Queen Victoria gave him the use of another royal residence, Bushey House, which had been occupied by the Dow- ager Queen Adelaide. The rest of the family were not far off. The Due d'Aumale had bought Orleans House at Twickenham, where his father had lived when Due d'Orl^ans ; the Prince de Joinville close by at a house called Mount Lebanon, and the Comte de Paris established himself at York House, once the abode of James II., and his son (the present Due d'Orleans) was born there in the room Queen Anne had been born in. It was not until after the Franco-Prussian war, the fall of Napoleon III., and the re-establishment of the French Republic, that in 1871 the law exil- ing the d'Orleans family was abrogated, and they were free to return to their dearly loved native country.^ The Dues de Nemours and d'Aumale were re- stored to their former positions in the French army, and the Dues de Chartres and d'Alencon also received commissions. The Due d'Aumale was elected a member of the Royal Academy, and the Due de Nemours did yeoman service as President of the Red Cross ^ They were received with great respect and cordiahty, and were everywhere regarded with much interest. 309 THE LIFE OF MARIE AMELIE Society. By a compact entered into with the State, a great part of their property was restored to them. Some years of peace and happiness followed, but misfortune always dogged the heels of the d'Orl^ans family, however little they deserved it. In 1883 Prince Napoleon made an abortive attempt to upset the Republic, the result of which was the passing of a decree, declaring that no mem- bers of families who had reigned in France could hold commissions in the French army. This of course included the d'OrMans Princes. The leave-taking between the young Dues de Chartres and d'Alen9on and their regiments was most touching. In 1886, not without fierce debates (in which justice was done to the fine qualities of the d'OrMans Princes and the fact that they had taken part in no conspiracies) and after the overthrow of three successive Ministries, another decree was issued which exiled "heads of families who had reigned in France and their direct heirs in order of primo- geniture." This did not affect the Due de Nemours and his brothers, but drove out the Comte de Paris and his son the Due d'Orleans, who returned to England, where the Comte de Paris died in 1894. The Rebellion of 1889 in Brazil, drove the Brazilian royal family, including Comte d'Eu, Con- sort of the heiress-presumptive to the Crown, into exile. Comte d'Eu was not popular in Brazil, because, as 310 THE LIFE OF MAKIE AMELIE one who was on intimate terms with him in that country said, " he was a gentleman ". The Emperor Dom Fedro was a tine character, enlightened and upright ; but he was warned, when with one stroke of a pen he abolished slavery in Brazil, that he was at the same time signing the abolition of the Monarchy. The conservative classes were reduced to poverty by the abolition of slavery, so he had no supporters to help him to stand against the growing forces of Re- volution in Brazil. Every one acknowledged the fine qualities of the Emperor, but young Brazil wanted to re-shuffle the cards. They were of the classes who have nothing to lose, and hope that in a new deal fortune may favour them. The old Emperor had no warning ; he was awakened in the middle of the night, dragged out of bed and told to dress, and with all the royal family marched down to the port between two lines of soldiers, put on a tramp steamer, and shipped off to Europe. So well had the Revolutionists taken their measure that any resistance was impossible. Three descendants of Queen Marie Am^lie occupy European Thrones to-day. The late King of the Belgians, Leopold IL, was her grandson ; his nephew and successor, the present King, is her great grandson. Another grandson is Ferdinand,^ Tzar of Bulgaria, and her great grand- ^Son of Princess Clementina of Saxe-Cobourg, youngest daughter of Louis Philippe and Marie Amelie. 311 THE LIFE OF MARIE AMELIE daughter and namesake Marie Amelie is Queen of Portugal.^ Her sad experience of the dangers and sorrows to which Kings and Queens are exposed in these days, transcends even that of her revered an- cestress. 1 Daughter of the late Comte de Paris. Her husband and son were assassinated while driving with her in the streets of Lisbon, 1907. ai2 INDEX Aboukir, battle of, 41. Acton, Lord, 25. Adelaide d'Orl(5ans, birth, 81. — — education, 8.5. — — proposed marriage, 88. — — goes to England, 89. — — life in exile, 95. character, 180. — — influence over brother, 183. political influence, 189. death, 264. Albert, Prince, 255, 260, 262, 285. d'Alen90n, Due, 271, 295, 302, 310. — Duchesse, 305. Alexander, Emperor, 147. Algiers, war in, 239, 246, 286. Ambrozio, Signora, 31. d'Angouleme, Due, 77, 88, 129, 191. — Duchesse, 125, 146, 148, 178, 200, 225. d'Anjou, Count, 17. — Philippe, 18, 19. Antoine, Archduke, 60. d'Artois, Comte, 101, 123-125, 131, 148, 170. — Mile., 158, 160, 190, 195. Asturias, Prince of, 29, 60, 64. — Princess, 61. d'Aumale, Due, 168, 242, 245, 246, 286, 290, 295, 298, 302, 309. — Duchesse, 246, 256, 303. Austria, Empress Theresa, 42, 57, 59, 66. — Emperor, 128, 129, 297. B Balbi, Comtesse de, 119. Bamburg, Bishop of, 60. Barcelona, 102. Barrot, Odilon, 192, 266. Barthe, Chancellor, 210. Bastille, 69. Beaudoin, 96. Beauharnais, Eugene, 68, 147. Beaujolais, Comte de, 85, 101. Belgians, King of, 172, 212, 251, 253, 256, 261, 285, 293, 311. — Queen of, 212, 225, 236, 243, 251, 262, 293. Bellechasse, 85, 86. Bentinck, Lord W,, 110, 157. Berlin, 235. Berry, Due de, 79, 143, 154-156 (159 assassination). -^j ., — Duchesse de, birth, 64. f — — marriage, 154-158. popularity, 190-199. ' :' in La Vendee, 216, 224. — — second marriage, 224. Berryer, 218. Berthier, General, 122. Bertrand, General, 249. Blacas, Due de, 130, 142, 145, 170, 216. Blaye, 215, 221, 222, 224. Boigne, Comtesse de, 137. Bombelles, Marquis de, 157. Bonaparte, Jerome, 252. — Joseph, 27, 66, 67, 110. — Napoleon, 1.5, 48, 58, 66, 140, 144, 195, 230, 246, 249. Bonrecueil, Mme. de, 217. Bordeaux, Due de, 168, 173, 181, 192, 21.5, 227, 247, 274. Bossy, Marie, 222. Bourbon Dynasty, 19, 98, 116, 144, 296.' — Due de, 80. — Duchesse de, 103, 168. Bourmont, Marshal, 217. 313 INDEX Bover, General, 243. Brazil, 242, 249, 304, 310. Bresson, M. de, 277, 279-281. Brussels, 243, 252, 293. Bugeaud, Marshal, 268. Bulgaria, Prince of, 254, 311. Bushey House, 309. Calabria, 16, 42, 62, 66. Calle Toledo, 45. Capri, 53. Caserta, 23, 29, 58. Catania, 56. Cay la, Comtesse de, 120, 150-152. Chabannes, General de, 291, 303. — Mme. de, 305. Chambord, Comte de, 215, 216, 225, 296, 299. Champoinet, General, 49, 109. Chautereau, Mme. de, 128. Charette, Comte de, 217, 218. Charles, Archduke, 18. Charles X., 139, 140. — accession, 170-177. — at Palais Royal Jete, 178. — political mistakes, 181. — abdication, 192. — exile, 199. — religious views, 209. Charliere, battle of, 218. Charlotte, Princess, 147, 251, 285. Chartres, L. P. Joseph, Due de, 74- 76, 79-83. — Duchesse de, 75-83. — Ferdinand, Due de, birth, 112. — — — education, 1.58, 162. — — — general admiration for him, 153. — — — marriage, 236-239. death, 254-256. — — — public regret, 270. Chateaubriand, 195, 222. Chauvelin, Marquis de, 119. Chune, La, battle of, 217, 218. Christina, Princess, 32, 57, 58. Cimarosa, 65. Claremont, 285, 289, 290, 308. Clementina, Archduchess, 56, 63, 113. Coude, Prince de, 118, 246, 302. Constantine, siege of, 240, 243. Conti, Princess, 103, 184. Corso, 48. Cuvillier, Fleury, 161, 178. Daumesnil, General, 202. Dauphin, the, 35. Dawes, Sophy, 247. Deutz, 219, 220, 221. Didier, 221. Didon, Pfere, 305. Dreux, 272, 273, 275, 307, 308. Drouet, General, 220. Dumas, General, 284, 291. Dumouriez, General, 94. Dupin, 77, 136. Duval, 221. Edgeworth, Abbe, 132. Edinburgh, 302. d'Elchingen, Due, 236. Elizabeth Farnese, 19. — of Saxony, 20. — Mme., 38, 127. d'fCnghien, Due, 246. d'Estancelin, M., 289. Etna, Mount, 56. d'Eu, Chateau, 250, 260. — Comte, 302, 804, 311. Featherstonhaugh, Mr., 278. Ferdinando III., 148. — IV., 20, 22, 28, 32, 63, 104. — the Order of, 54. Ferronays, Comte de la, 222. Feuchars, Mme. de, 247. Fieschi, 232. l^itzjames. Due de, 222. Folmont, Comte de, 103, 183. Fontainebleau, 125, 144, 236, 290. Fouche, 142, 143, 146, 148, 160. Fra Diavolo, 62. Francis II., Emperor, 42. 314 INDEX Franconi, 1(53, 242. Frohsdorff, 298. Geulis, Mme. de, 69, 71, 81, 83-88, 91. Genoa, Duke of, 68. Gerard, Marshal, 203. Ghent, 138, 146, 149. Girardin, E., 269. Goutant, Duchease de, 191, 192. Gringoire, Bishop, 207. Guelle, Abbe, 291. Gueranger, 210. Guigny, Miles, de, 219, 220, 224. Guiscard, Roger, 16. Guizot, M., 117, 260, 265, 275, 279. — Mme., 214. H Hamilton, Emma, 40, 41, 60, 63, 64, 63. Hartwell, 106, 118, 120, 160. Haut-Combe, 176. Havre, 277. Haydn, .59. Herculaneum, 30, 65. Honfleur, 274, 276, 282. I Infanta Isabel, 64, 66, 177. — of Brazil, 249, 304. Isabella, Queen, 250, 263. d'Issodun, Comtesse de, 160. Jacobins, 89. Janin, Jules, 111. Jemappes, battle of, 94. Joinville, Prince de, 163, 169, 179, 194, 201, 210, 232, 241, 248, 286, 290, 298, 303. — Princesse de, 249, 250, 256, .306. Josepha, Archduchess, 21, 22. Junot, General, 61. K Kaufmann, Angelica, 1.53. Kent, Duke of, 148. — Duchess, 234, 243, 263. Kersabiac, Mile, de, 220. Knight, Cornelia, 58. Lachan, Mme. de, 217. Lacordaire, Pere, 210. Lamartine, A., 232, 276, 282. Lamorci^re, 268. Larnac, M. de, 163. Lasteyrie, General, 291. Laval, M. de, 222. Lazzaroni, 32, 52, 62. Leopold, Emperor of Austria, 23, 38. — Prince of Salerno, 58. Saxe Coburg, 147, 212. Lorraine, Francis of, 16, 59, 60. Louis XIV., 18, 73, 74, 76, 171, 199, 237, 260. — XV., 58. — XVI., 37, 38, 49, 53, 69, 93, 116- 121. — Philippe d'Orleans, birth, 78. — — — baptism, 81. — is Due de Valois, 80. Chartres, 87. — education, 85. fights in Republican army, 93. — — — bravery, 94. — — — exile, 96. Professor of Mathematics, 96. becomes Due d'Orleans, 96. — goes to America, 98. England, 100. Sicily, 101. marries Marie Amelie, 105. — — — reception at Paris, 125. Louis XVIII. 's opinion of him, 81, 147, 148. — favoured by Charles X., 173. — Lamartine's opinion, 187. 315 INDEX Louis Philippe d'Orleans, called to the thi-Qiieof France, 188. — reluctance to accept, 195, 198. — — — attempts to assassinate him, 208. — — — wonderful courage, 208. — — — religious views, 209. — life as King of the French, 228. — — — restores Versailles, 228. — — — liberal gifts to nation, 228. — opinion of Europe, 2G0. — — — visits Queen Victoria, 262. Revolution of '48, 265. — — — abdication, 268. — exile in England, 284. death, 291. Louvel, 160. Lucchesi Palli, Marquis de, 216, 223, 225. M Macdonald, Marshal, 141. Maine, Due du, 74, 260. Maintenon, Chateau de, 199. Malmesbury, Lord, 239, 255, 285. Maria Carolina, Queen, 16, 22-25, 28, 30, 38, 57, 59, 67, 110, 111. — Theresa, Empress, 17, 18, 21, 29, 30, 59. Marie Amelie, birth, 17, 18. — — education, 29, 59. first betrothal, 35. character, 57, 123. — — talents, 59. — — appearance, 60. engaged to Due d'Orleans, 101. — — marriage, 105, leaves Sicily, 123. Louis XVill.'s opinion of, 123. — — Talleyrand's opinion of, 137. — — husband's love, 161. — — her reluctance to accept crown, 189, 193, 198. — — life as Queen of the French, 227, 229. — — — in exile at Claremont, 290. Marie Am^e, death, 300. — Louise, Empress, 17, 63, 107, 231. Mecklenburg, Princess of, 236. Mesnard, Comte de, 158, 216, 217, 224. Messina, 16. Metternich, Prince, 235. Meunier, 229. Michael the Fool, 61. Mittau, 130, 132. Modena, Due de, 216. Molg, 266. Montalembert, Comte, 222. Montalivet, 205. Montesquiou, A. de, 292. — Abbe de, 151. — General, 95. Montesson, Mme. de, 83. Montjoie, M. de, 100. — Mme., 285. Montmorency, R. de, 292. — Mathieu, 151. Montpensier, Due de, 85, 250, 262, 268, 270, 274, 295, 303. — Duchesse de, 86, 250, 271, 289, 297. Morris, Governor, 97. Mortier, Marshal, 233. Murat, Prince, 67, 110, 111. — Caroline, 27, 67, 110. Musse, H. de, 293. N Nantes, 217, 219, 221. Naples, 16, 44, 47,48, 64. Napoleon III., 295, 309. Nelson, Lord, 40-42, 50-54, 58, 63. Nemours, Due de, 137, 162. — — character, 166-168. youth, 170, 212, 234, 239. — — marriage, 243. Regent, 258. other events, 272, 287, 290, 309. — Duchesse de, 244, 256, 274, 293, 299, 307. Neuilly, Chateau "de, 165, 188, 189, 254. — Comte de, 284. Newborough, Lady, 75, 77, 81. 316 INDEX Newhaveii, 282. Ney, Marshal, HI. Olivier, Emile, 228. Ordinances of Charles X., 188, 203. d'Orleans, Due de, Philippe Egalite, (59, 73, 89, 90, 91-94. — Duchesse Dowager, 99, 103, 122, 124, 144, 168. — Anne, Princesse, 72, 175. — Clementine, Princesse, 244, 252, 271, 274, 289, 298. — Ferdinand, Due, 232, 234, 236, 254, 270. — Fran9oise, Princesse, 295. — Gaston, Prince, 302, 304. — Helene, Duchesse, 238, 255, 257, 269, 273, 287, 289, 290, 303. — Palazzo, 106, 108. — Isabella, Princesse, 295. — Louise, Princesse, 165. — Marie, Princesse, 240, 252. Orleans House, 147. Orleanist faction, 180. Paisello, 65. Palais Royal, 85, 88, 92, 114, 137, 148, 153, 171, 176, 196. sack of, 267. Palermo, 17, 49, 50, 52, 224. Paris, Archbishop of, 188, 249. — Comte de, 227, 2.38, 255, 268, 273, 287, 292, 302, 304, 309, 310. Parma, Due de, 139. Parthenopian Republic, 58, 62. Pasquier, Doctor, 254. Paul, Captain, 279, 281. — Emperor, 130, 132. Pavilion de I'Horloge, 270. Marsan, 169, 2.38. Penthievre, Due de, 74, 79, 80. — Mile, de, 75. Perier, Casimir, 198, 206, 207. Plombieres, 25.5. Polastron, Comtesse de, 124, 171. Polignac, Prince de, 191. Pompeii, 30, 65. Pope Gregory XVI., 210. Portugal, Queen of, 2.50, 251, 253, 311. Presburg, Diet of, 60. Provence, Comte de, 97, 118. — Comtesse de, 118. Prussia, King of, 13!), 286. — Queen of, 27. Rambouillet, 191. Randau, 186, 248. Raspail, 204. Keggio, Duchesse de, 222. Reichenau College, 96. Remusat, M. de, 268. Restoration, the, 116. Revolution of July, 265. — of 1848, 182-193. Rheims Archbishop, 170. Rome, King of, 111. Royal, Prince, the, of Sicilv, 34, 42, 55, 6.3, 108. — Princesse, 64, 66. Royale, Madame, 126-135. Ruffo, Cardinal, 62, 6,3, 109. Russia, Emperor of, 98, 138. St. Andre, 275. — Cloud, 161, 244, 253, 270, 272, 290. — Elmo, 26. — Menehold, 272. — Nicandro, 20. — Ouen, 151. Salerno, Prince of, 34, 63, 66, 68, 102, 110, 246. Samson, 93. Saracens, 16, 24. Sardinia, King of, 131, 175. — Queen of, 32, 65, 68, 174. Savoy, Dukes of, 72, 175. Saxe-Cobourg, Prince Augustus of, 243 253 Ferdinand, 244, 253. Leopold, 251, 285. Princess Victoria of, 243. Snow, Miss, 33. 317 INDEX Soult, Marshal, 122, 142. Spain, Kin^ Charles III., 19, 20, 30. IV., 21. v., 18, 60. Spanish marriages, the, 250, 263. Spence, Mr., 33. Syracuse, 56. — Conte di, 224. Talleyrand, 186, 197. Tamastra, 69, 70. Taniicci, 20, 21, 24, 25. Temple of Concord, 55. — — Jupiter Olympus, 55. Thierry, General, 289. Thiers, 182, 189, 219, 233, 268, 270. Thugut, 59. Treport, 280. Trognon, 161, 291. Trouville, 280, 282. Tuileries, 134, 137, 177, 204, 212, 269. — sack of, 233. Twickenham, 100, 147, 290, 309. Two Sicilies, the. Kingdom of, 18- 20, 23, 24, 61. Valenfay, Due de, 235. Valmv, battle of, 94. Valois, Due de, 80, 84, 104. Valori, Marquis de, 222. Vanguard, H.M.S., 41, 51. Vend(5e, La, 216, 218, 223. Vernet, H. , 240. Versailles, Must^e de, 228, 240. — FHe, 237. Vesuvius, Mt., 68. Victor Amadeus, 72. Victoria, Queen, 15, 234, 243, 260,. 253, 255, 260, 284, 293, 296, 300, 307. Vienna, 59, 129, 235. Vierzon, Comtesse de, 160, 217. Vigee le Brun, Mme., 47. Villeneuve, Marquis de, 217. Villette, Marquis de, 222. Villiers Coterets, 193. Vincennes, 202. Voltaire, 44, 210. W Windsor, 245, 253, 263. Wiiiterhalter, 246. Wurtemberg, Prince of, 240, 252. York House, 309. — Duke of, 148. Zell, Chapel of, 60. Zoe de Cayla, 120. ABEBDEEN : THE UNIVEBBITY PRESS 318 THE LIBRARY UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA Santa Barbara THIS BOOK IS DUE ON THE LAST DATE STAMPED BELOW. Series 9482 II'; "^niiTHERN REGIONAL I -P- ■'■' ILITY AA 000 271866 6