The True History of the State Prisoner, commonly called the Iron Mask

After the decease of Matthioli, every thing was done to endeavour to destroy all trace even of his former existence. His clothes were burnt, as was all the furniture of his room; the silver plate, the copper, and the pewter, which had been used by him, were melted down; the walls of his chamber were first scraped, and then fresh white-washed; the floor was new paved; the old ceiling was taken away and renewed; the doors and windows were burnt; and every corner was searched in which it was thought any paper, linen, or other memorial of him might be concealed.152

Thus were continued, to the very last, the same extraordinary precautions against discovery, which marked the whole imprisonment of the mysterious prisoner: a circumstance, which of itself certainly affords a strong confirmation of the fact, that the Iron Mask of the Bastille, was one and the same person with the Count Matthioli, who had been so secretly introduced into Pignerol, and so mysteriously conveyed from place to place by St. Mars. But the actual proof of this is only to be found in the documents which form the groundwork of the preceding narrative; and which, undoubtedly, do present a most convincing and satisfactory chain of evidence upon the subject.

An important corroboration of this evidence is also derived from the well-attested fact, that Lewis the Fifteenth, who is allowed, on all hands, to have known the history of the Iron Mask, affirmed, more than once, that he was the minister of an Italian sovereign. He told the Duke de Choiseul,153 on one occasion, that he knew who the Iron Mask was; and, upon the Duke’s questioning him further, would only add, that all the conjectures hitherto made upon the subject were erroneous.154 The Duke then begged Madame de Pompadour155 to ask the King who it was; she did so, and his reply was, “The minister of an Italian prince!”156 The Duke de Choiseul, unsatisfied by this reply, which he considered to be only an evasion, took another opportunity of again applying to the King upon the subject, who again answered, “He believed that the prisoner was a minister of one of the courts of Italy!”157

Thus has the ill-fated Matthioli been identified with the Iron Mask, and traced through his long and dreary prison to his grave. It is probable that much of the illusion and interest, which accompanied the mysterious appellation of the Iron Mask, will be destroyed by the certainty of who he really was; as well as by the comparative insignificance of the personage who has successfully laid claim to the title. Still it is surely satisfactory that truth, after being so long overwhelmed by error, should be at length triumphant.

The lovers of romance, who still wish to know more of the magnificent conjectures of former days; or who desire to be made acquainted with the reasons that induced a belief, that the Iron Mask was either the Duke de Beaufort; or the Count de Vermandois; or the Duke of Monmouth; or an elder or a twin-brother of Lewis the Fourteenth; or a son of Oliver Cromwell; or Arwediks, the Armenian Patriarch; are referred to Voltaire, Dutens, St. Foix, La Grange Chancel, Gibbon, the Père Papon, the Père Griffet, the Chevalier de Taulés, and Mr. Quintin Craufurd. Of these accounts, perhaps Voltaire’s is the least curious, find Mr. Craufurd’s the most so; because the first did not seek for truth, but only wished to invent a moving tale; while the latter was most anxious to arrive at the truth, and had all the advantage in his researches of the former writers upon the same subject.

APPENDIX

No. 1

ESTRADES TO LEWIS THE FOURTEENTH

Commencement of the Negociation. – State of the Court of Mantua. – Influence of the Spaniards there.

Venice, Dec 18th, 1677.

Sire,

As the grief I felt at having displeased your Majesty was extreme, so my joy is not less to learn from M. de Pomponne, that your Majesty has had the goodness to pardon me my too great facility; and that you have been graciously pleased to listen to the reasons, which I took the liberty to offer to you, in justification of the innocence of my intentions; however, Sire, this misfortune will oblige me, in future, to act in all things with so great a circumspection, that your Majesty will, I hope, never have cause to be dissatisfied with my conduct.

I have thus far deferred informing your Majesty of a project, which my anxiety for your service has suggested to me, because the success of it appeared so difficult that I did not venture to propose it, till I saw some chance of being able to accomplish it; but, as the affair is at present in a favourable state, I can almost assure your Majesty, that the conclusion of it will depend upon yourself. I shall now give you an exact account of it, in order that I may receive the orders it shall please you to send me; which I will take care to execute punctually. About four months ago, having become more particularly acquainted with the divisions at the Court at Mantua than before was the case, and having heard that the Duke of Mantua was not so abandoned to his pleasures, but that he still had some ambition, and much chagrin at the state to which he was reduced by his mother, and his suspicions of the Spaniards; I hoped that it would not be impossible, to detach him entirely from them, to induce him to enter into the views of your Majesty, and to persuade him really to treat respecting Casale. I have thought that I could not employ any one in this affair more proper to conduct it, than a certain Count Matthioli, who is entirely devoted to that prince; I had already known him for some time, and he had testified a great desire of rendering himself agreeable to your Majesty by some service. I knew that he had been Secretary of State to the late Duke of Mantua, that the present one had preserved much affection for him, and that he was well-informed of the different interests of the Princes of Italy; but as he had been much in the Milanese, and had had a good deal of access to the Spanish ministers, I would not put any confidence in him, till I had first tried him. I therefore charged the individual, named Giuliani, to whom your Majesty had the goodness to make six months ago a gratification, and who has a zeal for your service which prevents my having any doubt of his fidelity, to observe Matthioli attentively and secretly; and after I had been sufficiently informed that he was much discontented with the Spaniards, who had always amused him with hopes, and afterwards abandoned him, I sent Giuliani, in the month of last October, to Verona, where he went under pretext of his private affairs; but in fact, to put Matthioli, who was there, upon the subject of the Duke of Mantua, according to the instruction I had given him, and to represent to him that those who had an attachment for their prince, could not but be much afflicted to see him, at his age, still under the guidance of his mother; without money, without authority, always in a state of suspicion against those who are habitually about him; and what is worse, in so insensible a state, that he only thought of passing his life with actresses and women of the town; which had made him lose the esteem of every body, and the consideration which his rank ought to have given him: that so strange a way of life, as well as the opinion that was prevalent that he would never have children by his wife, though she was as young as himself, induced the Spaniards to foment the divisions that existed in this Court, in order to profit by them, and to try and obtain possession of Casale and of all the Montferrat; that the said Giuliani had heard me say, that I was well-informed that the Empress Eleanor had already declared her pretensions to put herself in possession of that part of the territories of Mantua; that the king of Spain supported strongly those of a Spanish nobleman, who, in virtue of his marriage with the niece of the Duke of Guastalla, by whom he has children, maintains that he is the sole heir of that duke, to the prejudice of the Duke of Mantua, who has married his daughter, and who is besides his nearest relation; that, on the other hand, the absolute control over all the territories of this prince, and all the revenues, were in the hands of his mother and of the monk Bulgarini; that, of all those who serve him as ministers, some are gained by the Spaniards, others by the Empress Eleanor, and the rest by the Duke of Guastalla; that his mother has also a part of them on her side, but that these are the smallest number, and in short, that it is a sort of miracle that he has not been already deprived of his territories, but that he runs the risk of it every day, and that the misfortune may happen to him when he is the least prepared for it; that he has no choice of the means to be made use of to guarantee himself against it, but that it is the protection of your Majesty which is alone able to give him complete security. Matthioli replied to him, that all he had been saying to him was quite true, and that he had long, with grief, seen the truth of it; but that there was still a remedy for so great an evil; that he was sufficiently acquainted with the Duke of Mantua to know that he had more talent and ambition than he was thought to have; that, if I approved of it, he would discover his real sentiments, and that he would charge himself with whatever negociation I wished. That, meanwhile, he would go to —158, in order to be nearer to Mantua, where he could not go without making himself suspected by the different parties who governed there, and that there he would wait till I made known to him my intentions. Some days afterwards, he sent me word that he had found means to have a secret interview with the Duke of Mantua; and that he wished me, in order that we might act in concert, to send him Giuliani, whom I have always made use of in the different journeys that were to be made, because his employment of sending the news through the different parts of Italy, gave him occasion to go from one town to another, and prevented any suspicion of him, as there would have infallibly been, if I had sent any one of my household. I despatched him, therefore, with a new instruction, and not only had he an audience of the Duke of Mantua, to whom he spoke as I had desired him, but this prince even approved very much of the proposition that was made him, to deliver him from the continual inquietudes caused him by the Spaniards, and that, for this purpose, Casale should be put into your Majesty’s hands, with the understanding that I should try to obtain from you in his favour all that he could reasonably ask for. Finally, he declared that his resolution was taken upon this subject, but, that things might be better adjusted, he wished to communicate it to two of his counsellors, in whom he had the most confidence, and that he gave the selection of them to Matthioli, in order that he might be quite secure of them. Matthioli named the Marquis Cavriani and Joseph Varano, in whom he has confidence. Meanwhile the Duke of Mantua sent Giuliani to me, to acquaint me with what had passed, and recommended him to return as soon as possible, in order to receive the draft of the plan, which would then be prepared – and to convey it to me. I was much pleased, Sire, to see the affair in so good a train. I sent Giuliani back quickly, and ordered him to tell the Duke of Mantua that I entreated him to allow me to have a conference with him; that your Majesty had not as yet any knowledge of the proposed treaty, because I could not venture to go so far as that, without being certain first that he would not disavow me in what I should have the honour of writing to your Majesty, and also that he would have sufficient power to execute what had been arranged.

Giuliani returned here yesterday, bringing me as favourable answers as I could possibly desire. He told me that the two counsellors of the Duke of Mantua had, with every sort of precaution, commenced their negociation with Matthioli; that they had approved of the resolution of their master, and that they had put down in the schedule, with which they had charged him, and which I join to this letter, what the Duke requests your Majesty to grant to him; that afterwards the Duke of Mantua called him to him; that he ordered him to beg me to assure your Majesty of his respect and of his attachment to your interests, and to acquaint me that he had entirely put himself into the hands of the Count Matthioli; that he would soon go to Venice, where we might see one another conveniently and without being observed, on account of the Carnival, during which, all the world, even the Doge, and the oldest senators, go about in mask; that he wished me not to lose any time in acquainting your Majesty with this affair, because he feared some surprise from the Spaniards; but that if I wished him to keep his word with me, I must not, on any account, communicate the project to the Cardinal d’Estrées, because there was so strong a report in Italy, that he had your Majesty’s orders to negociate with the Princes there, of which the Spaniards had so great a jealousy, that, upon the least suspicion they should have of him (the Duke,) they would ruin him before he could receive assistance from your Majesty, who would, at the same time, lose all hope of getting possession of Casale; that he would take measures to tranquillize them, and to prevent their having any suspicions of his conduct; and that if the Cardinal d’Estrées made him any propositions, he would only receive them in full council, and give general answers, which would not render him suspected by any body. I thus find myself precluded from the confidence which I intended to make of this business to the Cardinal d’Estrées, who I believe will soon be here, and am obliged to keep the secret scrupulously, till I have received the orders of your Majesty. The Duke of Mantua also offers to raise a regiment, provided it be at your Majesty’s expense, and he represents, that by recruiting at Mantua and Casale he shall do much injury to the Spaniards, who are raising troops there daily; that Joseph Varano, who is one of the two before-mentioned counsellors, promises to get a good many soldiers from the Ferrarese, where he possesses interest, being Lord of Camerigo. He also implores your Majesty to make an effort to send a sufficiently strong army into Italy, to be able to undertake something considerable; and he assures me, that, in this case, he will not content himself with having delivered Casale into the hands of your Majesty, but will obtain for your Majesty other great advantages, through the means of his intimate connexions with the other states of Italy; that the Duchy of Milan was never so feeble, nor so devoid of all means of defence, as at present; but that, in order to obtain more particular intelligence upon this head, he has given orders to Matthioli to go to Milan, to observe every thing there with attention, and especially to discover the intention of the Genoese, with regard to the report which has now been for some time afloat in Italy, that your Majesty intends sending an army there next Spring, at the latest. As some accident might happen to the packets, I have not ventured to put into mine the letter that the Count Matthioli, who has certainly served your Majesty well upon this occasion, does himself the honour to write to you, but have had it turned into cypher, as well as the memoir of the demands of the Duke of Mantua; and I keep the originals, together with the plan of Casale, which I do not send to your Majesty for the same reason. I can assure your Majesty, that I have never told either Giuliani or Matthioli that you intend to march troops towards the Milanese; but the latter speaks of it in his letter, because he has taken for granted the report which was purposely spread abroad in order to lead the Duke of Mantua to the determination I wished him to take; knowing that he desired to be generalissimo above all things, or rather that it was the only thing he was very anxious for, in order to be considered in Italy like the late Duke of Modena, and like the late Duke of Mantua, who at his age commanded in chief the Emperor’s army, with the title of Vicar-general of the Empire. When this Prince is here, there will only be at the conference we are to hold together, himself, Matthioli, (whom he has promised to re-establish in his post of Secretary of State, and to appoint his first minister, as soon as he shall see himself restored to his authority, and that the treaty he intends making with your Majesty shall have been executed,) the Sieur Giuliani, the Sieur de Pinchesne, (who is secretary of the embassy, and of whom M. de Pomponne, who placed him with me, can answer to your Majesty for the fidelity and secrecy,) and myself. So the secrecy, so necessary in this affair, will certainly remain impenetrable.

I have the honour to be, &c.The Abbé d’Estrades.159

No. 2

MATTHIOLI TO LEWIS THE FOURTEENTH

Protestations of devotion to Lewis. – Belief in the good intentions of the Duke of Mantua.

December 14th, 1677.

Sire,

I take the liberty of bearing testimony to your Majesty, that among the great Ministers, whom, in your supreme wisdom, you have sent at different times into Italy, your ambassador at Venice, the Abbé d’Estrades, ought to be distinguished for his skill and his zeal to seize every occasion, which may seem to offer him the improvement or the aggrandizement of your territories.

This Ambassador having confided to me, that, in order to succeed in the enterprize that you meditate against the territories of Milan, it would be necessary to detach the Duke of Mantua from the Austrian party, and to draw him into that of your Majesty, I am anxious to contribute every thing in my feeble power for the success of this object. Your Majesty will be made acquainted with all that has passed by the despatches of the Ambassador. For myself, I bless the destiny, which procures me the honour of serving so great a monarch, whom I regard and revere as a demi-god.

I will transmit to your Majesty all that I shall learn respecting Casale, which has been fortified by one of the most skilful engineers of the Milanese. This engineer has promised us a plan of all the fortresses of that State, and even, if your Majesty commands him, he will separate himself from the service of Spain, who does not know how to recompense properly the services and the talents of those who serve her with fidelity. I am convinced it would be useless in me to enlarge upon the importance of the fortress of Casale. Your Majesty must remember, that at different times it has arrested the progress of many armies, and that it is the only bulwark, upon which depends the loss or the preservation to the Spaniards of the territories of Milan; territories, which for more reasons than one, ought to belong to your Majesty’s crown.

It is known that the Austrians are at this moment arming, in order to obtain possession by surprize of Casale, to the prejudice of the Duke Ferdinand, my master, the lawful possessor of it.

This Prince, nephew of Charles160 the first, (which latter Prince was rather French than Italian, and by whose intervention the fortress of Pignerol has remained in the possession of your royal house); this Prince, I say, Ferdinand, will make known, in fit time and place, that he has not degenerated from his ancestors; he has promised to serve you with the greatest fidelity, and to fight for you in a manner worthy of his birth; and as he is extremely anxious to acquire glory, I trust your Majesty will have reason to applaud his conduct in your armies. By the confession of even the most skilful political observers, he is free from the suspicions, which may fall upon the other Italian Sovereigns. The Abbé d’Estrades knows that his Highness has communications with other great personages, who complain with reason of the insupportable yoke of the Spaniards, and who will take arms with him to combat, and to drive as quickly as possible from Italy, a power which is only established there to oppress it. If destiny willed it so, I have no doubt that the other Princes of this country would be happy to enjoy a stable peace under the auspices of your Majesty. I offer up vows for the progress of your victorious arms, and I pray God to prolong your days for the consolation of the world, &c.

Hercules A. Matthioli.161

No. 3

ESTRADES TO POMPONNE

Continuation of the negociation. – Intrigues of the Austrian Party.

Venice, Dec. 24, 1677.

Sir,

I have only some few particulars to add to the letter, which I did myself the honour to write to the King last week; but as the Duke of Mantua has made known to me, that they may serve to make you still more aware how important it is to that Prince to take his measures secretly, and to use all possible diligence for the conclusion of the affair, which I have given an account of to his Majesty, I have thought it necessary, Sir, that you should be informed of them. Three days ago, the Duke of Mantua informed me that he had found means to procure a copy of the written orders that the Empress Eleanor and the Emperor, conjointly with the Spaniards, had given to the Count Viltaliano Borromei, a Milanese, and the Imperial Commissary. They are to this effect, that if the French should come into Italy, and that it should appear to him that the Duke of Mantua had any intention to be on their side, he should make use of this pretext to render himself master of Casale without delay, by means of their partizans, who are there in considerable numbers, and among others, the Governor of the town, and the Governor of the citadel; in order to preserve this fortress and all the Montferrat for the Empress Eleanor. The Marquis Carrossa has received a similar order with regard to Mantua. He is also an Imperial Commissary, and it will be easy for him to execute what is ordered him, because the Governor of the citadel is his brother-in-law, and the Major of the town his intimate friend. On these accounts, the Duke of Mantua has sent me word that in his present situation, in which he is besides watched by his mother, by the Monk Bulgarini, who governs her, and by the greater part of his Ministers, who are devoted to the House of Austria, he is obliged to show no ambition, to appear to have no knowledge of his own affairs, and to excite no suspicions by his conduct; and also that he cannot declare himself openly in favour of the King’s interests, as he would wish to do, nor deliver up Casale to his Majesty, unless he will send a sufficient army into Italy to secure that fortress, and to defend him (the Duke) from the evils that menace him, and from the designs which the House of Austria has against him; and that this obliges him to supplicate and exhort his Majesty to make an effort to that effect, even if he has not actually resolved to carry the war into the Milanese, since Casale is an acquisition sufficiently important to determine him to it. But Matthioli, to whom the Duke of Mantua has given up the entire conduct of this affair, goes still farther, and is confident, that even in this case means could be easily found to place a Governor in the citadel of Mantua, and a Major in the town, who should be as much attached to the service of the King, as those who at present occupy these two posts are to the House of Austria.

We must, besides, Sir, consider that the Duke of Guastalla, being the nearest relation of the Duke of Mantua, as well as his heir, there would be danger that, if the Duchess his daughter, who is very ill, and has no children, should die, some misfortune might happen to the Duke of Mantua, which would assure his territories to the Spanish nobleman, who has married the second daughter of the Duke of Guastalla, and whose marriage the Spaniards, doubtless with this view, made up at Vienna, by means of Don Vincent, who returned from thence some time back. You know much better than I do, Sir, of what consequence it would be to the king, not only to take away the Mantuan and the Montferrat from the House of Austria, who will never lose an opportunity of making use of them when they have once obtained them, but besides to have in his own hands these two states, by means of which his Majesty can easily bridle the Princes of Italy. Therefore, I do not take the liberty of entering farther upon this matter, or of mingling my reflections with those you may choose to make upon it.

∗ ∗ ∗ ∗ ∗I am, &c.The Abbé d’Estrades.162

No. 4

ESTRADES TO POMPONNE

Intrigues of the Spaniards to form a league in Italy against France.

Venice, January 1st, 1678.

Sir,

I have so little news to send you from hence to-day, that I shall very soon have told you all I know, and may hope not to fatigue you with the length of this letter.