Memoirs of the Duchesse de Dino (Afterwards Duchesse de Talleyrand et de Sagan), 1836-1840
advertised by conversations and continual publications that it daily
becomes more difficult to solve the problem, and the only possibility
is to cut the knot. Commercial interests have been suddenly paralysed,
and business in general is suffering heavily. Rothschild, who has
quarrelled with M. Thiers, has lost even more millions than M. Fould
has gained. M. Molé explains all this very cheerfully.
I went to dinner with the wife of Marshal d'Albuféra. The poor woman
was in despair, for that morning she had seen her daughter start for
Spain in the most deplorable state of health. She has kept one of her
grandchildren with her. She is really a most warm-hearted person. Her
account of the present political situation differs entirely from that
of M. Molé; she is no less frightened by the serious nature of events,
but attributes them to other causes. She is never tired of praising
the capacity, the energy, and the cleverness of M. Thiers, his
inexhaustible resource, and his complete harmony with the King. One
fact she told me which would hardly please M. Bresson: that M. de La
Redorte was given the choice of going to Berlin and preferred Madrid.
She says that M. de La Redorte has been very successful in Spain, and
that the King and Ministers are never weary of praising the
distinguished tone of his despatches.
At nine o'clock I went to see Madame de Castellane. There the
panegyric upon the late M. de Quélen was discussed, which led the
conversation to the new Archbishop, M. Affre. His nomination was
brought about by M. de Montalembert in the following way: M. de
Montalembert has become a strong partisan of the Ministry, and M.
Thiers thinks that with his help he will be able to confine the ranks
of the clergy to distinguished men. As a matter of fact, M. de
Montalembert is only connected with the democratic section of the
young clergy, who form a party by themselves, including the Abbés
Cœur, Combalot, Lacordaire, and Bautain, which is not regarded as
orthodox in the sense that the old clergy are. This party also
contains some distinguished young priests like the Abbé Dupanloup, the
Abbé Petetot, the Curé de Saint-Louis-d'Autin, and others; in fact,
there is quite a schism.
When I returned home I found a letter from M. Bresson, of which the
following is an interesting passage: "The position is very serious,
and the Prussian King's first appearance in foreign policy is not
happy. There is no frankness or nobility in following all these fine
protestations with an act of provocation and injustice towards
ourselves, who have never been guilty of a single act of bad faith
towards Prussia. Such action calls for vengeance, and I am by no means
a sufficiently humble Christian not to thirst for it. I am well aware
that they are sorry at what has happened and are embarrassed by it,
but they have been carried away by that great windbag Bülow further
than they wished at a time when his voracious appetite has been
followed by a fit of indigestion; but the harm has now been done, and
it is irreparable. They have shown their real feelings, and what
confidence can we have for the future? In short, I am utterly
disgusted, and I should be glad to resign my post; I am also ill and
depressed, and have a longing for Rome. I wish to leave my mind fallow
and to sit in real sunshine and get warm. I have spent twenty-four
years in exile working without intermission, and I can stand it no
longer. I am utterly bored, and do not want the good relations which
I have been able to maintain here to break down during my tenure of
office, as they seem likely to do. One fault leads to a second, and
one wrongdoing begets another. Besides, I have been personally
affronted; I have been loyal and they have not been. My resentment
will find vent, and whether upon the King or the Minister is all the
same to me. I will make them repent their want of gratitude and
courtesy towards our King, after calling him the Palladium of Europe,
in speaking to me and M. de Ségur." In this vehement style the
impetuosity of M. Bresson will be obvious, but the truth is I think
things have gone so far as to make him wish for another post.
To-morrow the Paris Stock Exchange account is made up. The probable
losses are estimated at twenty-four to twenty-five millions--a very
great disaster.
_Paris, September 4, 1840._--Yesterday I went to the Tuileries to keep
an appointment with Madame Adélaïde. I also saw the King there, who
was well and cheerful, in a very easy frame of mind, convinced that
there would be no war, and certainly not anxious for one. He flattered
himself that the four Powers would soon be persuaded that they were
working in the wrong direction and be forced to fall back upon his
intervention, and that he would thus be called to play the part of
mediator, &c. He is very greatly hurt that the Powers should have put
him in such a position, but is too sensible to listen to the
invectives and the uproar of the Ministerial Press. He has no greater
leanings towards M. Thiers than he used to have, but he understands
that it is now impossible to break with him, and hopes to use him to
extort certain concessions from the Powers, which he alone could
induce the country to accept. There is an element of truth and
cleverness in these ideas, though also a certain amount of illusion.
Madame's feelings are those of the King, though she is extremely
bitter against M. Guizot, and accuses him of showing the most utter
diplomatic incompetence. She repeated more than twenty times: "Oh, if
only our dear Prince de Talleyrand were alive, if only our good
General Sébastiani had remained at London, we should not be in this
position!"
I had hardly returned home when the Duc d'Orléans called upon me, and
stayed for a long time. He is far more anxious, and at the same time
far more decided, than his father. His exasperation with the Powers is
extreme, chiefly on account of the way in which events have come to
pass. On July 16 Guizot sent news that nothing had happened or would
happen; on the 17th he had a letter from Lord Palmerston asking him to
call, and when he reached the house Lord Palmerston simply read the
famous memorandum. Guizot became pale and agitated, and could find
nothing to say except that he would inform his Government, and left
Lord Palmerston as though thunderstruck. Now he and his friends throw
the whole of the blame upon Thiers. Thiers replies vigorously that
they are in the wrong, and gives details, so that relations are
greatly strained. Thiers is horrified at the possibility of war, but
instead of calming the journalists of his party he is so entirely
dominated by them that he not only cannot check them, but thinks
himself bound to tell them everything. The result is that secrecy is
impossible; the Diplomatic Body is affronted and action in general is
hampered. Meanwhile all the preparations announced by the newspapers
have been made, and even doubled. The Duc d'Orléans is himself taking
the business in hand. Thirty-four million francs have already been
expended. All the forces in Algiers are being recalled, and the
authorities have made up their minds to abandon the colony without
regret, telling themselves that they have had the advantage of
training their soldiers and their officers. The Chambers will not be
summoned until all chances of peace have disappeared, when it is
expected that all these expenses will be certainly approved. The Queen
is the most warlike of the whole royal family; the blood of Maria
Theresa is aroused; she is furious with the action of the Powers, and
says that if war breaks out she will ask the Archbishop of Paris to
bless the swords of her five sons and make them swear upon the Holy
Sacrament never to sheath them again until France and their dynasty
are restored to the chief place in Europe. As she usually interferes
in no way, this vigour has astonished and embarrassed the King.
M. Guizot, to return to him, is an object of ridicule at the Château,
especially since the return of the Duc de Nemours from London, for he
tells numberless stories at the expense of the little ambassador. He
asks for the addresses of tailors, wishes his trousers to be
tight-fitting, bets at the races, thinks he has a good eye for a
horse, devotes his attention to his carriages and his table, is
utterly frivolous, and, to complete his ridiculous appearance, brags
in front of Mrs. Stanley and tries to make Madame de Lieven jealous,
and it is said with some success. This field of operations, in short,
is being cleverly worked.
After the Duc d'Orléans had gone I had a call from the Abbé Dupanloup,
who gave me some curious details concerning the Paris clergy, among
whom a silent but very definite opposition has arisen against Mgr.
Affre. The vulgarity and rudeness of his manner rouses exasperation
against him every day. He has admitted his entire hatred of the memory
and the friends of the late Mgr. de Quélen; even my poor self am an
object of his dislike; and as for the Sacré Cœur, it is a case of
persecution. The Abbé began to laugh when I said, "Then we have become
the Fort-Royal of the Jesuits!" Mgr. Affre does not venture to
interfere with the Abbé Dupanloup or his little seminary, and even
goes out of his way to please him, because of the Abbé's widespread
relations, which make him a favourite with M. Jaubert, Minister of
Public Works, with the Princesse de Beauffremont, a pronounced
Carlist, with Madame de La Redorte, and with Madame de Gramont, of the
Sacré Cœur. Moreover, in the course of the week which preceded the
nomination of the Archbishop, M. Thiers sent for him to ask his
opinion about the state of the clergy. M. Thiers, with his usual
tactlessness, had made an appointment at the same time with M. de
Montalembert, who brought with him Mgr. Affre. The parties arrived
simultaneously, and were astounded at meeting one another. While they
were thus awaiting the Minister with surprise, he was closeted with
M. Royer-Collard. Eventually the four men confronted one another for a
few moments--a memorable scene.
The Abbé Dupanloup renewed his promise to come and see me at
Rochecotte in October; at the same time he did not hide the fact that
he might be unable to come if he saw that the Archbishop was unduly
disturbed, for he has to respect his feelings for the sake of his
little seminary.
In the papers seized with Louis Bonaparte proofs were found that the
undertaking was financed by Russia, with the connivance of the Carlist
party, led by Berryer, and the name of M. Thiers was too frequently
mentioned. The King forbade the Chancellor to pursue his action in
this direction for two reasons: firstly, because M. Thiers would have
been obliged to give evidence which would have embarrassed and
complicated the general situation to a far greater extent; and,
secondly, because the King thinks it useless to show his foreign
enemies to what an extent they can count on positive support from
Russia. What will be the end of these conflicting interests and this
general complication?
_Paris, September 5, 1840._--Paris was greatly excited the day before
yesterday and yesterday by the numerous gatherings and bands of
workmen. The newspapers give full details. Much money has been found
upon those who have been arrested, which is supposed to come from the
Russo-Bonapartists; such, at least, is the opinion of the Government.
Every day reveals some new social disease, and the age is racked by
cruel sickness.
Yesterday I went to the Sacré Cœur for a long talk with Madame de
Gramont, whom I found uneasy and disturbed. She gave me full details
of the harassing treatment laid upon her by the new Archbishop, and
also of his new style of ruling the Paris clergy, to which they are by