Joseph Bonaparte

Letter to La Fayette.

"My dear General, – I have received your letter of the 26th of November. I am satisfied that under the circumstances you did that which you conscientiously thought it your duty to do. You have thought, as have I, and as did the Emperor Napoleon, that a republic could not, at present, be established in France. You have recoiled before the confusion which it would introduce in the interior. You could undoubtedly have found a remedy for that in the family which the nation had called to such high destinies. But the hatred of foreigners against that family which France had chosen, inclined you to a prince between whom and legitimacy there was but a single child.37

"My reply is short. Let France preserve peace and liberty with that family. Let such become the national will legitimately expressed, and the conduct of the sixty-two Deputies, who have called the second branch of the House of Bourbon to power, will no longer be discussed by any one. Will this be done? Time alone can tell us.

"The portion of your letter in which you speak of the Napoleonic system as impressed with despotism and aristocracy merits, on my part, a more detailed response. While I render justice to your good intentions, I can not but deplore the situation in which you found yourself when released from the prisons of Austria. That imprisonment did not permit you to judge the influence exerted upon the national opinion and character by the wretched Reign of Terror. You had only seen the liberal system of America, and you have condemned the all-powerful man who did not transfer that system to France. I remember that one day my brother, in coming from an interview with you, my dear general, said to me these words:

"'I have just had a very interesting conversation with the Marquis de la Fayette upon the subject of the disorderly persons whom the police have sent from Paris. I have said to him that this was done that they might not disturb the tranquillity of good men like himself, whose residence in France appeared to them one of my crimes.38 The Marquis de la Fayette does not know the character of these people in whom he interests himself. He was in the prisons of despotism when these people made all France to tremble. But France remembers this too well. We are not here in America.'

"Napoleon never doubted your good intentions. But he thought that you judged too favorably of your contemporaries. He was forced into war by the English, and into the dictatorship by the war. These few words are the history of the Empire. Napoleon incessantly said to me, 'When will peace arrive? Then only can I satisfy all, and show myself as I am.'

"The aristocracy of which you accuse him was only the mode of placing himself in harmony with Europe. But the old feudal aristocracy was never in his favor. The proof of this is that he was its victim, and that he expiated, at Saint Helena, the crime of having wished to employ all the institutions in favor of the people; and the European aristocracy contrived to turn against him even those very masses for whose benefit he was laboring. The French nation renders him justice; and the European masses will not be slow to say that Napoleon had ever in view the suffrage of posterity, whose verdict is always in favor of him who has only in view the happiness of his country."

On the 15th of February, 1832, Joseph wrote from Point Breeze to the Duke of Reichstadt as follows:

Letter to the Duke of Reichstadt.

"My dear Nephew, – The bearer of this letter will be the interpreter of my sentiments. He has passed several weeks in my retreat. They have been occupied with the souvenirs of your father, and of your future lot. I was born eighteen months before your father. We were brought up together. Nothing has ever diminished the warm affection which united us. At his death he entrusted to me the care of communicating to you his last wishes. But before my distance from you enabled me to fulfill that duty, his testament had been published in all the leading journals of Europe.

"When, in 1830, the house imposed upon France by foreigners was again expelled by the nation, I hastened to address to the Chamber of Deputies, and to his Imperial Majesty, your grandfather, the inclosed letters. But my distance from France still thwarted my wishes, and the younger branch of that same house was again imposed upon France by a factious minority. Innumerable calumnies, intended to alienate the nation from you, were scattered abroad with profusion. A chamber, controlled by the Government usurping the rights of the nation, proscribed us anew. But the voice of the people called you. Of that I have conclusive evidence.

"Let his Imperial Majesty consent to entrust you to my care; let him send me a passport that I may come to him and to you, I will quit my retreat to respond to his confidence, to yours, to the sentiment which commands me to spare no efforts to restore to the love of the French the son of the man whom I have loved the most of any one upon earth. My opinions are well known in France. They are in harmony with those of the nation. If you enter France with me and a tri-color scarf, you will be received there as the son of Napoleon.

"When you were born in Paris, the 20th of March, 1811, your father had become, through the love of the French people as well as through the obstinacy of the English oligarchy making war upon him, the most powerful prince in Europe. The English oligarchy foresaw the prosperity which France, governed in accordance with the liberal doctrines of the age, would attain if she had peace. That oligarchy feared the contagion of the example upon other states. Therefore it did not cease to employ the immense resources which the monopoly of the commerce of the world placed at its disposal to excite against Napoleon enemies at home and abroad, and to stifle, at its birth, the union of the peoples and the kings for the reform of the anti-social privileges of the oligarchy. It therefore provoked incessant war, and thus rendered France every day more powerful, through the victories she obtained under the direction of your father, whom it accused of the calamities inseparable from a war kindled by itself, and with the sole object of maintaining its unjust privileges.

"It was at the close of a strife incessantly renewed, excited by the Government of a nation sufficiently rich to pay the soldiers of the others, and sheltered by its insular position against all attempts against itself, that, after the triumphs of twenty years, your father succumbed beneath the united efforts of the Allies of England, who perceived too late their fatal errors.

"Napoleon was the friend both of the peoples and of the kings. He wished to reconcile them to each other. He wished to save other states from the misfortunes which a bloody revolution had inflicted upon France. These were the reforms which he desired, voluntary ameliorations, commended by the increasing civilization of the world, and the widely-extended interests of all classes, and not violent commotions, which always pass beyond the end desired. His greatest vengeance against England did not exceed that which the advocates of the bill of reform seek for to-day.

"I think that now you are placed in a position to continue the work with which a divine genius inspired your father. France will accept you with enthusiasm. Factions will subside. The power with which your father was invested is no longer needful for the accomplishment of his designs. It was war which elevated upon the thrones of Europe the princes of his family. But it was not that he might give them thrones that he engaged in war. They were military positions occupied during the general struggle which the oligarchies had decided never to close but by the abasement of France. It was necessary to allow the conquered countries to be invaded by the republican system for which they were not prepared, or to cause them to be governed by men of whose devotion to France and to himself he was fully assured. And where could he find better guaranties than in his brothers, whom nature, as well as the favors which they had received from the nation, had destined to share his adverse as well as his good-fortune, both inseparable from that of France?

"To-day time has borne its fruits. Nations are more enlightened respecting their interests. They know well that the most happy nation is that in which the greatest number of men enjoy the most prosperity; which obeys a supreme magistrate whom it loves, and who himself has not the baleful power to abuse the life, the property, the liberty of the people, whom he represents only that he may protect the rights which they have entrusted to him. Such were the opinions, and especially the instinct, of your father. Every thing for the people! And at the general pacification which he desired with all his heart, Every thing by the people, and for the people. He did not live long enough.

"May I live long enough to see you return to our country, restored to herself, the worthy heir of his heart, all French, of his generous intentions. As for his immense genius, it is no longer necessary for France or for Europe. You are destined, by your birth, to unite peoples and kings, and to reconcile the old and the new civilization; to prevent new upheavings, to moderate all political passions, and thus to bring forward that prosperity of individuals and of nations which can only arise from justice, from the free development of all rights, from the equilibrium of all duties.

"Your father was accustomed to say to me, 'When will the time arise when justice alone shall reign? When shall I finish my dictatorship? We do not yet see that time. The English oligarchy will not have it so. My son perhaps will see it. May that presage be soon accomplished.'

"This is also the fondest wish of my heart. Receive it with the tenderness of the old friend of your glorious father, at Point Breeze, State of New Jersey, in the United States of America, where I live as happy as one can be far from his country, in the most prosperous land upon the earth, under the name which I have adopted, of the Count of Survilliers."

The elder brother of the present Emperor, Napoleon III., who had married the youngest daughter of Joseph Bonaparte, died in Italy in March, 1831. With his younger brother, Louis Napoleon, he had joined the Italians in their endeavor to throw off the yoke of Austria. The young prince, who had developed a very noble character, fell a victim to the fatigues of the campaign. By the vote of the French people, the Duke of Reichstadt was the first heir to the throne of the Empire. In case of his death, the crown passed to Joseph Bonaparte. As Joseph had no children, his decease would transfer the sceptre to his brother, Louis Bonaparte, and from Louis it would pass to Louis Napoleon, his only surviving son.

When, in 1832, Joseph heard of the dangerous sickness of the Duke of Reichstadt, whose death, as we have mentioned, would constitute Joseph first heir to the throne, he with some hesitancy decided to leave his peaceful retreat at Point Breeze and repair to England. He hoped to obtain permission to visit his dying nephew in Vienna, and then to reunite himself in Italy with his wife, and with his revered mother, who was still living. Upon his landing in Liverpool he received the sad tidings that the Duke of Reichstadt had breathed his last on the 22d of July. He was twenty-one years of age, tall, graceful, affectionate, and of marvellous beauty. His mother and other friends wept at the side of his couch. Devoutly he partook of the sacrament of the Lord's Supper, and, with a smile lingering upon his cheek, fell asleep. We trust

"Asleep in Jesus, blessed sleep,From which none ever wake to weep."

CHAPTER XII

LAST DAYS AND DEATH

1832-1844

Joseph in England.

Joseph, finding himself in England in 1832, and his nephew, the Duke of Reichstadt, no longer living, took up his residence in London. He earnestly desired to join his wife and mother in Italy. But the jealousy of the Allies would not allow him, until he was absolutely sinking in death, to place his foot upon the Continent. His universally recognized virtues secured for him, from all classes of society, a cordial reception.

While Joseph resided in England, the celebrated Spanish chief, Mina, who had been one of the most formidable of the leaders of the guerrillas, made several visits to the ex-King, expressing the deepest regret that he had not sustained him. He stated to Joseph that his intercepted letters had so revealed his true character, that others of the leaders who had operated against him were now in his favor.

La Fayette wrote Joseph a letter of sympathy in view of his double affliction in the loss of his son-in-law, Napoleon Louis, and his nephew, the Duke of Reichstadt. The letter, from which we make the following extract, was dated La Grange, October 13, 1832:

Letter from La Fayette.

"My dear Count, – I am deeply affected by those testimonials of confidence and friendship which you kindly give me. And I merit them by all those affections which attach me to you. It is with profound sympathy that I share in your grief from the two cruel bereavements. I should immediately have written to you in London, had I not been informed that you were on the route to Italy. I have, however, since learned that your entrance into Rome has been interdicted to your filial piety by a base and barbarous policy."

La Fayette also expresses his deep regret that the Orleans Government persisted in the decree which banished the Bonaparte family from France. Joseph, in a reply dated London, Nov. 10, 1832, writes:

Letter from Joseph to La Fayette.

"My dear General, – I have received your kind letter, and I thank you with all my heart. It is true that I love, as much as you do, the institutions of the United States. But I am near to France, and I do not wish to see it vanish from my eyes like a new Ithaca. I prefer France to the United States as the residence for my declining years, and I rely upon your powerful co-operation to secure that for me. It only remains for me to hope to see my country as happy as that which I have just left – a country which I love above all others except my native soil. A day will come undoubtedly, in which France will have no occasion to envy even happy America. As soon as it shall be clearly understood that all ought to devote themselves to the happiness of all, the most difficult thing will be accomplished. May we live long enough to witness that, and may I have the happiness of renewing my long friendship in our common country, in sometimes speaking to you of the admiration and gratitude with which you are regarded in the New World."

The following letter from Victor Hugo reflects such light upon the reputation of Joseph Bonaparte, as to merit insertion here. It was dated Paris, Feb. 27, 1833:

Letter from Victor Hugo.

"Sire, – I avail myself of the first opportunity to reply to you. Monsieur Presle, who leaves for London, kindly offers to place this letter in the hands of your Majesty. Permit me, sire, to treat you ever royally, vous traiter toujours royalement. The kings whom Napoleon made, in my opinion nothing can unmake. There is no human power which can efface the august sign which that grand man has placed upon your brow. I have been profoundly moved by the sympathy which your Majesty has testified for me upon the occasion of my prosecution for 'Le Roi S'amuse.' You love liberty, sire. Liberty also loves you. Permit me to send you, with this letter, a copy of the discourse which I pronounced before the Tribunal of Commerce. I am very desirous that you should see it in a form different from the reports in the journals, which are always inexact.

"I should be very happy, sire, to go to London to clasp that royal hand which has so often clasped the hand of my father. M. Presle will inform your Majesty of the obstacles which at the present moment prevent me from realizing a wish so dear. I have very many things to say to you. It is impossible that the future should be wanting to your family, great as has been the loss of the past year. You bear the grandest of historic names. In truth, we are moving rather toward a republic than toward a monarchy. But, to a sage like you, the exterior form of government is of but little importance. You have proved, sire, that you know how to be worthily the citizen of a republic. Adieu, sire; the day in which I shall be permitted to press your hand in mine will be one of the most glorious of my life. While waiting for this your letters render me proud and happy."

The celebrated Duchess of Abrantes, wife of Marshal Junot, sent her Memoirs to King Joseph by the hands of M. Presle. The following extracts from the letter of the duchess to M. Presle shows the enthusiastic attachment which Joseph won from his friends. The letter is dated Paris, 1833.

Letter from the Duchess of Abrantes.

"Will you be so good, sir, as to have the kindness to take charge of the book which I send with this, and also of the letter which I address to his Majesty, King Joseph? I earnestly desire that both should be transmitted to him as promptly as possible. I very much wish, sir, I could have the pleasure of seeing you. My attachment for King Joseph is so profound and so true, of such long-standing, so established upon bases which can never crumble, that I would give days of my life to talk a moment with persons loving him as I do, and speaking to me as I speak of him and think of him. As for me, to see him for one moment would be now the fulfillment of the most ardent of my wishes.

"With these feelings, you will perceive, sir, how happy I shall be to have him soon receive this letter, which I entrust to you. It contains my wishes for the new year. And I can truly say that there is not another heart in France more sincerely devoted to his happiness – his true happiness and his glory. Ah! sir, I assure him that in France there is one being who is warmly attached, sincerely devoted to him, as are all hers. My children have been cradled in the name of Napoleon, and that without concealment. The misfortune of their father has been an additional tie to attach them to the memory of the Emperor, and to all those who bear his revered name. The bust of the Emperor is in my alcove, by the side of the font in which I place my lustral water. There I every morning and evening repeat my prayers. Why should I not say this? I do it because my love for my country constrains me to fall upon my knees before that name which constituted its glory and its happiness for fifteen years."

Restoration of Napoleon's Statue to the Column of Austerlitz.

On the 28th of July, 1833, the Louis Philippe Government, in reluctant concession to the almost universal voice of the French people, restored the statue of Napoleon to the Column of Austerlitz, in the Place Vendôme. It is scarcely too much to say that as that statue rose to its proud eminence, the whole French nation raised a shout of joy. A Parisian journal, The Tribune, intending perhaps to reflect upon the Government, expressed surprise in not seeing a single member of the Bonaparte family shaking the dust of exile from his feet, and coming, in the broad light of July, claiming a "just reparation." Joseph wrote to the editor from London a letter containing the following sentiments:

"I have read in your journal of July 29th the article in which you give an account of the solemnity which took place on the 28th at the foot of the Column of Austerlitz, upon the inauguration of the statue of the Emperor Napoleon. You attribute the absence of his brothers to very strange sentiments. Are you ignorant, then, that an iniquitous law, dictated by the enemies of France to the elder branch of the Bourbons, excluded these brothers, out of hatred to the name of Napoleon? Would you wish that, in defiance of a law which the National Majesty has not yet repealed, we should bear the brands of discord into our country at the moment when it re-erects the statue of our brother? Every thing for the nation, was the motto of our brother. It shall be ours also.

"Instead of speaking, as a hostile journal would have done, in casting the blame upon patriots proscribed, who wander over the world the victims of the enemies of their country, would it not have exhibited more of courage and of justice on your part, sir, to recall to the electors of France that Napoleon has a mother who languishes upon a foreign soil, without it being possible for her children to speak to her a last adieu? She shares with three generations of her kindred, including sixty French, the rigors of an exile of twenty years. They are guilty of no other crime than that of being the relatives of a man whose statue is re-erected by national decree.

"The name of Napoleon will never be the banner of civil discord. Twice he withdrew from France, that he might not be the pretext for the infliction of calamities upon his country. Such are the doctrines which Napoleon has bequeathed to his family. It is because the French people know well that his pretended despotism was but a dictatorship, rendered necessary by the wars which his enemies waged against him, that his memory remains popular. Is it just, is it honorable that his family should still be condemned to endure the anguish of exile, and to hear even his ancient enemies reproach the French with the injustice of their proscription?"

This law of proscription, dictated by the Allies on the 12th of January, 1816, and re-affirmed by the Government of Louis Philippe, was as follows:

The Law of Proscription.

"The ascendants and descendants of Napoleon Bonaparte, his uncles and his aunts, his nephews and his nieces, his brothers, their wives and their descendants, his sisters and their husbands, are excluded from the realm forever."

The penalty for violating this decree of banishment was death. Madame Letitia had been informed in Rome that the Louis Philippe Government contemplated abolishing the decree of exile, so far as she alone was concerned. In response she wrote, April, 1834, to a distinguished gentleman in Paris, M. Sapey, as follows:

Letter from Madame Letitia.

"Monsieur, – Those who recognize the absurdity of maintaining the law of exile against my family, and who wish nevertheless to propose an exception, do not know either my principles or my character. I was left a widow at thirty-three years of age, and my eight children were my only consolation. Corsica was menaced with separation from France. The loss of my property and the abandonment of my fireside did not terrify me. I followed my children to the Continent. In 1814 I followed Napoleon to the island of Elba. In 1816, notwithstanding my age, I should have followed him to Saint Helena had it not been prohibited. I resigned myself to live a prisoner of state at Rome; yes, a prisoner of state. I know not whether that was through an amplification of the law which exiled me with my family from France, or by a protocol of the allied powers.

"I then saw persecution reach such a pitch as to compel the members of my family, who had devoted themselves to live with me at Rome, to abandon the city. I then decided to withdraw from the world, and to seek no other happiness than that of the future life; since I saw myself separated from those for whom I clung to life, and in whom reposed all my souvenirs and all my happiness, if there were any more happiness remaining for me in this world. How could I hope to find any equivalent in France, which was not already poisoned by the injustice of men in power who could not pardon my family the glory which it has acquired?

"Leave me, then, in my honorable sufferings, that I may bear to the tomb the integrity of my character. I will never separate my lot from that of my children. It is the only consolation which remains to me. Receive, nevertheless, monsieur, my thanks for the kind interest which you have taken in my affairs."

On the 15th of January, 1835, Joseph wrote to his brother Louis, the father of Napoleon III., as follows:

Letter from Joseph to Louis.

"My dear Brother, – I have received your letter of the 27th of December. I am afflicted by the depression of spirits in which it was written. It is true that for many years fortune has been constantly severe with us. But it is something to be able to say to one's self that fortune is blind. And an irreproachable conscience and a good heart offer many consolations. They accompany us wherever we go, and prevent us from being too severe in our turn against fortune and her favorites of the day.