The Private Life of Napoleon Bonaparte, Complete

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The Emperor and Empress went one day to breakfast in the environs of
Milan, on a little island called Olona. While walking over it, the
Emperor met a poor woman, whose cottage was near the place where their
Majesties' table had been set, and he addressed to her a number of
questions. "Monsieur," replied she (not knowing the Emperor), "I am very
poor, and the mother of three children, whom I have great difficulty in
supporting, because my husband, who is a day laborer, has not always
work."--"How much would it take," replied his Majesty, "to make you
perfectly happy?"--"O Sire, it would take a great deal of money."--"But
how much, my good woman, how much would be necessary?"--"Ah, Monsieur,
unless we had twenty louis, we would not be above want; but what chance
is there of our ever having twenty louis?"

The Emperor gave her, on the spot, the sum of three thousand francs in
gold, and ordered me to untie the rolls and pour them all into the good
woman's lap.

At the sight of so much gold the latter grew pale, reeled, and I saw she
was fainting. "All, that is too much, Monsieur, that is indeed too much.
Surely you could not be making sport of a poor woman!"

The Emperor assured her that it was indeed all hers, and that with this
money she could buy a little field, a flock of goats, and raise her
children well.

His Majesty did not make himself known; for he liked, in dispensing his
benefits, to preserve his incognito, and I knew, during his life, a large
number of instances similar to the foregoing. It seems that historians
have made it a point to pass them over in silence; and yet it is, I
think, by the rehearsal of just such deeds that a correct idea of the
Emperor's character can and should be formed.

Deputations from the Ligurian Republic, with the Doge at their head, had
come to Milan to entreat the Emperor to annex Genoa and its territory to
the Empire, which demand his Majesty took care not to refuse, and by a
decree formed of the Genoese states three departments of his Italian
kingdom. The Emperor and Empress set out from Milan to visit these
departments and some others.

We had been at Mantua a short time, when one evening, about six o'clock,
Grand Marshal Duroc gave me an order to remain alone in a little room
adjoining that of the Emperor, and informed me that Count Lucien
Bonaparte would arrive soon. He came in a few moments; and as soon as he
announced himself, I introduced him into, the Emperor's bedroom, and then
knocked at the door of the Emperor's cabinet, to inform him of his
arrival. After saluting each other, the two brothers shut themselves up
in the room, and there soon arose between them a very animated
discussion; and being compelled to remain in the little saloon, much
against my will, I overheard a great part of the conversation. The
Emperor was urging his brother to get a divorce, and promised him a crown
if he would do this; but Lucien replied that he would never abandon the
mother of his children, which refusal irritated the Emperor so greatly,
that his expressions became harsh and even insulting. When this
altercation had lasted more than an hour, M. Lucien came out from it in a
deplorable condition, pale and disheveled, his eyes red and filled with
tears; and we did not see him again, for, on quitting his brother, he
returned to Rome.

The Emperor was greatly troubled by this refusal of his brother, and did
not open his mouth on retiring. It has been maintained that the
disagreement between the brothers was caused by the elevation of the
First Consul to the Empire, and Lucien's disapproval of this step; but
that is a mistake. It is indeed true that the latter had proposed to
continue the Republic under the government of two consuls, who were to be
Napoleon and Lucien, one to be at the head of the department of war and
foreign relations, the other of everything connected with the affairs of
the interior; but although the failure of this plan must have
disappointed Lucien, the avidity with which he accepted the titles of
senator and count of the Empire proved that he cared very little for a
republic of which he was not to be one of the heads. I am sure that the
marriage of Monsieur Lucien to Madame Jouberthon was the only cause of
this disagreement. The Emperor disapproved of this union because the
lady's reputation was somewhat doubtful, and she was also divorced from
her husband, who had become insolvent, and had fled to America. This
insolvency, and the divorce especially, offended Napoleon deeply, who
always felt a great repugnance for divorced people.

Before this, the Emperor had wished to raise his brother to the rank of
sovereign, by making him marry the Queen of Etruria, who had lost her
husband. Lucien had refused this alliance on several different
occasions; and at last the Emperor became angry, and said to him, "You
see how far you are carrying your infatuation and your foolish love for a
femme galante."--"At least," replied Lucien, "mine is young and pretty,"
alluding to the Empress Josephine, who had been both the one and the
other.

The boldness of this reply excited the Emperor's anger beyond all bounds.
At that moment he held in his hands his watch, which he dashed with all
his might on the floor, crying out, "Since you will listen to nothing,
see, I will break you like this watch."

Differences had arisen between the brothers before the establishment of
the Empire; and among the acts which caused the disgrace of Lucien, I
have often heard the following cited.

Lucien, being minister of the interior, received the order of the First
Consul to let no wheat go out of the territory of the Republic. Our
warehouses were filled, and France abundantly supplied; but this was not
the case in England, and the scarcity of it was beginning to be felt
there. It was never known how it happened; but the larger part of this
grain passed the Strait of Calais, and it was stated positively that the
sum of twenty millions was received for it. On learning this, the First
Consul took away the portfolio of the interior from his brother, and
appointed him ambassador to Spain.

At Madrid, Monsieur Lucien was well received by the king and the royal
family, and became the intimate friend of Don Manuel Godoy, Prince de la
Paix. It was during this mission, and by agreement with the Prince de la
Paix, that the treaty of Badajos was concluded, in order to procure which
it is said that Portugal gave thirty millions. It has been also declared
that more than this sum, paid in gold and diamonds, was divided between
the two plenipotentiaries, who did not think it necessary to render an
account of this transaction to their respective courts.

Charles IV. loved Lucien tenderly, and felt for the First Consul the
greatest veneration. After examining carefully several Spanish horses
which he intended for the First Consul, he said to his head groom: "How
fortunate you are, and how I envy your happiness! you are going to see
the great man, and you will speak to him; how I should like to take your
place!"

During his embassage Lucien had paid his court to a person of most
elevated rank, and had received her portrait in a medallion surrounded
with very fine brilliants. I have seen a hundred times this portrait
which he wore suspended from his neck by a chain of most beautiful black
hair; and far from making a mystery of it, he endeavored, on the
contrary, to show it, and bent over so that the rich medallion could be
seen hanging on his breast.

Before his departure from Madrid, the king likewise made him a present of
his own portrait in miniature, also set in diamonds.

These stones, remounted and set in the form of a hat buckle, passed to
the second wife of Lucien. I will now give an account of his marriage
with Madame Jouberthon, as related to me by a person who resided in the
same house.

The First Consul was informed each day, and very promptly, of all that
took place in the interior of the homes of his brothers, a circumstantial
account being rendered, even as to the smallest particulars and the
slightest details. Lucien, wishing to marry Madame Jouberthon, whom he
had met at the house of the Count de L----, an intimate friend of his,
wrote between two and three o'clock in the afternoon to Duquesnoy, mayor
of the tenth arrondissement, requesting him to come to his residence, Rue
Saint Dominique, about eight o'clock in the evening, and bring the
marriage register.

Between five and six o'clock Monsieur Duquesnoy, mayor of the tenth
arrondissement, received from the chateau of the Tuileries an order not
to take the register out of the municipality, and above all not to
celebrate any marriage whatever, unless, in accordance with the law, the
names of the parties thereto had been published for eight days.

At the hour indicated Duquesnoy arrived at the residence, and asked to
speak in private to the count, to whom he communicated the order
emanating from the chateau.

Beside himself with anger, Lucien immediately hired a hundred post-horses
for himself and friends; and without delay he and Madame Jouberthon, with
these friends and the people of his household, took carriages for the
chateau of Plessis-Chamant, a pleasure-house half a league beyond Senlis.
The cure of the place, who was also associate mayor, was summoned, and at
midnight pronounced the civil marriage; then, putting on his sacerdotal
robes over the scarf he wore as an officer of the civil state, he
bestowed on the fugitives the nuptial benediction. A good supper was
then served, at which the assistant and cure were present; but, as he
returned to his vicarage about six o'clock in the morning, he saw at his
gate a post-chaise, guarded by two soldiers, and on entering his house,
found there an officer of the armed police, who invited him politely to
be kind enough to accompany him to Paris. The poor curate thought
himself lost; but he was compelled to obey, under penalty of being
carried to Paris from one guard-house to another by the police.

Nothing was left for him but to enter the fatal chaise, which was drawn
at a gallop by two good horses, and soon arrived at the Tuileries, where
he was brought into the cabinet of the First Consul, who said to him in a
voice of thunder, "It is you, then, Monsieur, who marry members of my
family without my consent, and without having published the bans, as is
your duty in your double character of cure and assistant mayor. You well
know that you deserve to be deprived of your office, excommunicated, and
tried before the courts." The unfortunate priest believed himself
already in prison; but after a severe lecture he was sent back to his
curacy, and the two brothers were never reconciled.

In spite of all these differences, Lucien always counted on the affection
of his brother to obtain him a kingdom. I guarantee the authenticity of
the following incident, which was related to me by a reliable person:
Lucien had in charge of his establishment a friend of his early youth,
the same age as himself, and like him born in Corsica, who was named
Campi, and enjoyed the most confidential relations in the count's
household. On the day that the 'Moniteur' gave a list of the new French
princes, Campi was promenading in the handsome gallery of pictures
collected by Lucien, with the latter's young secretary, when the
following conversation occurred between them. "You have no doubt read
the 'Moniteur' of to-day?"--"Yes."--"You have seen that all the members
of the family have had the title of French princes bestowed on them, and
the name of monsieur le count alone is wanting to the list."--"What
matters that? There are kingdoms."--"Considering the care
that sovereigns take to keep them, there will hardly be any
vacancy."--"Ah, well, they will be made. All the royal families of
Europe are worn out, and we must have new ones." Thereupon Campi was
silent, and advised the young man to hold his tongue, if he wished to
preserve the favor of the count. However, it was not long after this
before the young secretary repeated this confidential conversation,
which, without being singularly striking, gives, however, an idea of the
amount of confidence which should be placed in the pretended moderation
of Count Lucien, and in the epigrams against his brother and his family
which have been attributed to him.

No one in the chateau was ignorant of the hostility which existed between
Lucien Bonaparte and the Empress Josephine; and to make their court to
the latter the former habitues of Malmaison, now become the courtiers of
the Tuileries; were in the habit of relating to her the most piquant
anecdotes they could collect relative to the younger brother of the
Emperor. Thus it happened that by chance one day I heard a dignified
person and a senator of the Empire give the Empress, in the gayest manner
imaginable, very minute details as to one of the temporary liaisons of
Count Lucien. I do not guarantee the authenticity of the anecdote, and I
experience in writing it more embarrassment than the senator displayed in
relating it, and omit, indeed, a mass of details which the narrator gave
without blushing, and without driving off his audience; for my object is
to throw light upon the family secrets of the imperial household, and on
the habits of the persons who were nearest the Emperor, and not to
publish scandal, though I could justify myself by the example of a
dignitary of the Empire.

Count Lucien (I do not know in what year) established himself in the good
graces of Mademoiselle Meserai, an actress of the Theatre Francais, who
was both pretty and sprightly. The conquest was not difficult, in the
first place, because this had never been her character towards any one,
and, secondly, because the artiste knew the great wealth of the count,
and believed him to be prodigal. The first attentions of her lover
confirmed her in this opinion, and she demanded a house. He at once
presented her with one richly and elegantly furnished, the deed being put
in her hands on the day she took possession; and each visit of the count
added to the actress's wardrobe or jewel-case some new gifts. This
lasted some months, at the end of which Lucien became disgusted with his
bargain, and began to consider by what means to break it without losing
too much. Among other things, he had made mademoiselle a present of a
pair of girandoles, containing diamonds of great value. In one of the
last interviews, before the count had allowed any signs of coldness to be
seen, he perceived the girandoles on the toilet-table of his mistress,
and, taking them in his hands, said, "Really, my dear, you do me
injustice; why do you not show more confidence in me? I do not wish you
to wear jewelry so much out of date as these."--"Why, it has been only
six months since you gave them to me."--"I know it; but a woman of good
taste, a woman who respects herself, should never wear anything six
months old. I will take the ear-rings and send them to de Villiers [he
was the count's jeweler] with orders to mount them as I wish." The count
was tenderly thanked for so delicate an attention, and put the girandoles
in his pocket, with one or two necklaces which had also been his gift,
and which did not appear to him sufficiently new in style, and the breach
took place before any of these had been returned.

Notwithstanding this, Mademoiselle believed herself well provided for
with her furniture and her house, until one morning the true proprietor
came to ask her wishes as to making a new lease. She ran to examine her
deed, which she had not yet thought to do, and found that it was simply a
description of the property, at the end of which was a receipt for two
years' rent.

During our stay at Genoa the heat was insupportable; from this the
Emperor suffered greatly, saying he had never experienced the like in
Egypt, and undressed many times a day. His bed was covered with a
mosquito netting, for the insects were numerous and worrying. The
windows of the bedroom looked out upon a grand terrace on the margin of
the sea, and from them could be seen the gulf and all the surrounding
country. The fetes given by the city were superb. An immense number of
vessels were fastened together, and filled with orange and citrontrees
and shrubs, some covered with flowers, some with fruits, and all combined
formed a most exquisite floating garden which their Majesties visited on
a magnificent yacht.

On his return to France, the Emperor made no halt between Turin and
Fontainebleau. He traveled incognito, in the name of the minister of the
interior, and went at such speed that at each relay they were obliged to
throw water on the wheels; but in spite of this his Majesty complained of
the slowness of the postilions, and cried continually, "Hurry up! hurry
up! we are hardly moving." Many of the servants' carriages were, left
in the rear; though mine experienced no delay, and I arrived at each
relay at the same time as the Emperor.

In ascending the steep hill of Tarare, the Emperor alighted from the
carriage, as did also Berthier, who accompanied him; the carriages of the
suite being some distance behind, as the drivers had stopped to breathe
their horses.

His Majesty saw, climbing the hill a few steps before him, an old,
decrepit woman, who hobbled along with great difficulty. As the Emperor
approached her he inquired why, infirm as she was, and apparently so
fatigued, she should attempt to travel so difficult a road.

"Sir," replied she, "they tell me the Emperor is to pass along here, and
I wish to see him before I die." His Majesty, who liked to be amused,
said to her, "Ah, but why trouble yourself about him? He is a tyrant,
like all the rest." The good woman, indignant at this remark, angrily
replied, "At least, Sir, he is our choice; and since we must have a
master, it is at least right that we should choose him." I was not an
eye-witness of this incident; but I heard the Emperor himself relate it
to Dr. Corvisart, with some remarks upon the good sense of the masses,
who, according to the opinion of his Majesty and his chief doctor, had
generally formed very correct opinions.




CHAPTER XXVII.

His Majesty the Emperor passed the month of January, 1806, at Munich and
Stuttgard, during which, in the first of these two capitals, the marriage
of the vice-king and the Princess of Bavaria was celebrated. On this
occasion there was a succession of magnificent fetes, of which the
Emperor was always the hero, and at which his hosts tried, by every
variety of homage, to express to this great man the admiration with which
his military genius inspired them.

The vice-king and vice-queen had never met before their marriage, but
were soon as much attached to each other as if they had been acquainted
for years, for never were two persons more perfectly congenial. No
princess, and indeed no mother, could have manifested more affection and
care for her children than the vice-queen; and she might well serve as a
model for all women. I have been told an incident concerning this
admirable princess which I take pleasure in relating here. One of her
daughters, who was quite young, having spoken in a very harsh tone to her
maid, her most serene highness the vice-queen was informed of it, and in
order to give her daughter a lesson, forbade the servants to render the
young princess any service, or to reply to any of her demands, from that
time. The child at once complained to her mother, who told her gravely
that when any one received, like her, the care and attention of all
around them, it was necessary to merit this, and to show her appreciation
by consideration and an obliging politeness. Then she required her to
ask pardon of the 'femme de chambre', and henceforward to speak to her
politely, assuring her that by this means she would always obtain
compliance with all reasonable and just requests she might make.

The child obeyed; and the lesson was of such benefit to her that she
became, if general report is to be believed, one of the most accomplished
princesses of Europe. The report of her perfections spread abroad even
to the New World, which contended for her with the Old, and has been
fortunate enough to obtain her. She is at this time, I think, Empress of
Brazil.

His Majesty the King of Bavaria, Maximilian Joseph, then about fifty
years of age, was very tall, with a noble and attractive physiognomy and
fascinating manners. Before the Revolution he had been colonel of an
Alsatian regiment in the service of France, under the name of Prince
Maximilian, or Prince Max as the soldiers called him, and stationed at
Strasburg, where he left a reputation for elegance and chivalrous
gallantry. His subjects, his family, his servants, everybody, adored
him. He often took long walks through the city of Munich in the morning,
went to the market, inquired the price of grain, entered the shops, spoke
to every one, especially the children, whom he persuaded to go to school.
This excellent prince did not fear to compromise his dignity by the
simplicity of his manners; and he was right, for I do not think any one
ever failed to show him respect, and the love which he inspired lessened
in no wise the veneration which was felt for him. Such was his devotion
to the Emperor, that his kindly feelings extended even to the persons who
by their functions approached nearest to his Majesty, and were in the
best position to know his needs and wishes. Thus (I do not relate it out
of vanity, but in proof of what I have just said) his Majesty the King of
Bavaria never came to see the Emperor, that he did not take my hand and
inquire first after the health of his Imperial Majesty, then after my
own, adding many things which plainly showed his attachment for the
Emperor and his natural goodness.

His Majesty the King of Bavaria is now in the tomb, like him who gave him
a throne; but this tomb is still a royal tomb, and the loyal Bavarians
can come to kneel and weep over it. The Emperor, on the contrary--

[Constant wrote this before the return, in 1840, of the ashes of
Napoleon to rest on "the banks of the Seine, amid the French people
whom he loved so well," where in a massive urn of porphyry, and
beneath the gilded dome of the Invalides, in the most splendid tomb
of the centuries, sleeps now the soldier of Lodi, Marengo,
Austerlitz, Wagram, and Waterloo.--TRANS.]

The virtuous Maximilian was able to leave to a worthy son the scepter
which he had received from him who perished an exile at St. Helena.
Prince Louis, the present King of Bavaria, and to-day perhaps the best
king in Europe, was not so tall as his august father, neither was his
face so handsome; and, unfortunately, he was afflicted with an extreme
deafness, which made him raise his voice without knowing it, and in
addition to this his utterance was impeded by a slight stammering. This
prince was grave and studious; and the Emperor recognized his merit, but
did not rely upon his friendship. This was not because he thought him
wanting in loyalty, for the prince royal was above such suspicion; but
the Emperor was aware that he belonged to a party which feared the
subjection of Germany, and who suspected that the French, although they
had so far attacked only Austria, had ideas of conquest over all the
German powers.

However, what I have just stated in regard to the prince royal relates
only to the years subsequent to 1806; for I am certain that at that epoch
his sentiments did not differ from those of the good Maximilian, who was,
as I have said, full of gratitude to the Emperor. Prince Louis came to
Paris at the beginning of this year; and I saw him many times at the
court theater in the box of the prince arch-chancellor, where they both
slept in company and very profoundly. This was also such a habit with
Cambaceres, that when the Emperor asked for him, and was told that
monseigneur was at the theater, he replied, "Very well, very well; he is
taking his siesta; let us not disturb him!"

The King of Wurtemburg was large, and so fat that it was said of him God
had put him in the world to prove how far the skin of a man could be
stretched. His stomach was of such dimensions that it was found
necessary to make a broad, round incision in front of his seat at the
table; and yet, notwithstanding this precaution, he was obliged to hold
his plate on a level with his chin to drink his soup. He was very fond
of hunting, either on horseback, or in a little Russian carriage drawn by
four horses, which he often drove himself. He was fond of horseback
riding, but it was no easy task to find a mount of size and strength
sufficient to carry so heavy a burden. It was necessary that the poor
animal should be progressively trained; and in order to accomplish this
the king's equerry fastened round the horse a girth loaded with pieces of
lead, increasing the weight daily till it equalled that of his Majesty.
The king was despotic, hard, and even cruel, ever ready to sign the
sentence of the condemned, and in almost all cases, if what is said at
Stuttgart be true, increased the penalty inflicted by the judges. Hard
to please, and brutal, he often struck the people of his household; and
it is even said that he did not spare her Majesty the queen, his wife,
who was a sister of the present King of England. Notwithstanding all
this, he was a prince whose knowledge and brilliant mind the Emperor
esteemed; for they had a mutual affection for each other, and he found
him faithful to his alliance to the very end. King Frederic of
Wurtemburg had a brilliant and numerous court, at which he displayed
great magnificence.