government, declared against the principle | he entered France, assumed the title of of inviting Louis Stanislaus Xavier to the Lieutenant-General of the Kingdom. This throne, and proposed that Louis XVIII. title the Senate refused to acknowledge; should be at once and unconditionally ac- and when his intended entrance into Paris knowledged as the legitimate King of was announced, the Senators refused to France, as the successor of Louis XVII., meet him, or accompany him to the palace. whose right would thus be also implicitly The provisional government, with Talleyadmitted. In a word, the proposition of rand at its head, however, met his Royal M. de Montesquiou tacitly effaced all that Highness at the Barrier, where Talleyrand had been done in France since the fall of addressed him in these words:-" MonLouis XVI. It became evident, in the de- seigneur, our felicity will be perfect, if your bates to which this proposition of the ultra- Royal Highness will accept, with that royalist parties gave rise, that the complete divine goodness which distinguishes your realization of the design of Talleyrand was august house, the homage of our devotion." no longer to be hoped for. In this situation The prince, not possessed of presence of of affairs, Talleyrand saw that the best he mind or command of language, stammered could do for the country was to make a com- out some incoherent and unintelligible repromise with the legitimist party, giving ply; but in the course of the evening the them his support, and obtaining from them in following answer was written for him by return such concessions in favor of popular Talleyrand, and, with his consent and aprights as they could be induced to consent probation, inserted in the Moniteur of the After much discussion, a senatus con- following day :-Messieurs, members of the sultum was drawn up conjointly by Talley-provisional government, I thank you for rand and the Abbé de Montesquiou on the 6th April, and promulgated the next day, including the following heads ::

to.

"1. The free invitation of the Bourbons to the throne of France, by the French people.

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2. The recognition of the ancient noblesse, and the continuance of the imperial noblesse. "3. The maintenance of the Legion of Honor. "4. King, senate, legislative body, to concur in making laws.

"5. Legislative body to be elective, to have freedom of discussion, and public debates.

"6. Taxes to be equitable, and granted only for

gramme.

all the good that you have done for our country. Let there be no longer any division among us. Let peace and France be the cry. I revisit my country, and find nothing changed by my presence, except that there is one Frenchman more.

Talleyrand observing the injurious appearances produced by the marked absence of the senators from these ceremonies, endeavored to impress on the Count D'Artois the importance of his coming to a good understanding with them. After much negotiation it was at length arranged, that the Senate rejecting as it did the right of the prince to the title of Lieutenant-Genehis brother, who had not yet himself had ral of the Kingdom, by the appointment of an opportunity of complying with the conditions on which the throne was offered to him-should itself nominate the Count D'Artois to the Lieutenant-Generalship. This was accordingly done, and a deputation from the Senate was afterwards presented to the prince by M. Talleyrand, who read an address on the occasion.

Between the date of the publication of this act of the senate, and the entry of the Count D'Artois into Paris-an interval of less than a week, much disputation pre- The answer to this address, as usual, was vailed, and many bitter sarcasms were in- prepared by Talleyrand, and read as folterchanged, between the royalists, impe-lows by the Count D'Artois :-" I thank rialists, and republicans. Nothing but the greatest caution and prudence on the part of M. Talleyrand could have prevented a fatal collision of parties, which would either have compromised the cause of the Restoration, or utterly destroyed all hopes of obtaining any form of constitutional government. The Count D'Artois, when

you, in the name of the king, my brother, for the share you have taken in the return of our legitimate sovereign, and for having thus ensured the happiness of France, for which the king and his family are ready to shed their blood. We must have henceforward but one thought. The past must be forgotten. We must be for the future

united as brothers. While I hold in my hands the government, which I trust will not be a long period, I will use all the means in my power to promote the public good."

The Count D'Artois was now at the head of the government.

this mode of accomplishing the object. He persisted with more than customary pertinacity in the idea that the constitution ought to emanate from the nation, and be accepted by the King, instead of emanating from the King, and being accepted by the nation. He argued that even prudence In the interval between the nomination would dictate such a course, since it would of the Count D'Artois to the Lieutenant- give a more secure guarantee for the future. Generalship of the kingdom by the Senate, The King, however, opposed this with an and the arrival of Louis XVIII. at Com- obstinacy to be ascribed more to the prepiègne, Talleyrand saw all the difficulty he judices of his education, and the counsels still had to encounter in order to secure to of those around him, than to the unbiassed the French nation a free constitution under exercise of his judgment. When pressed the restored dynasty. The ultra-Royalists by Talleyrand, who demonstrated the adhad become more bold, and the doctrines vantages which would attend the simple of Divine Right, Monarchy by the grace of acceptance of the constitution proposed by God, and the continuous reigns of Louis the Senate, the King, unable to refute his XVII. and Louis XVIII., notwithstanding arguments, yet determined not to yield, the events of the Revolution, the Consulate, said "Si j'acceptais cette constitution, and the Empire, were boldly and loudly vous seriez assis, M. de Talleyrand, et je proclaimed. The Count D'Artois was serais debout." careful not, even indirectly or incidentally, No fitting occasion was, however, omitto say or do anything which could com- ted by Talleyrand to remind the King of promise these principles, and Talleyrand the condition of his restoration. Thus, did not press the prince on these points, when the Senate were received at St. Omer, prudently awaiting the arrival of the re- before the public entry of Louis into Paris, called sovereign, with whom he never ceased Talleyrand, as president, addressed him as to correspond, from whom he had directly follows: received full powers, and of whose more enlightened understanding and more liberal dispositions he was cognisant.

In fine, Louis arrived at Compiègne. Talleyrand, well aware of the sinister influence likely to be exercised on him by the ultra-Legitimist party, and the emigrants, whose devotion to the doctrines of the old monarchy neither exile nor misfortune had shaken, had so managed that the Emperor Alexander, persuaded that he had pledged himself publicly that the French people should have free institutions, went to Compiègne, where he had a long personal conference with the King, in which he is reported to have said to him-"I have promised to France in your Majesty's name a free constitution. There must be two Chambers, and a free press. I intend to grant the same institutions myself to Poland. Your Majesty's enlightened understanding assures me that you will make this concession."

The principles of the constitution were then settled by the two sovereigns, and it was agreed that they should be incorporated in a charter to be granted by Louis XVIII. to the French people. It is but justice to the memory of Talleyrand to record, that he struggled to the last against

"Sire-The return of your Majesty restores to France its natural government, and gives all the necessary securities for the repose of the country, and the tranquillity of Europe. The Senate, profoundly moved, happy to mingle its sentiments with those of the French people, comes to lay at the foot of the throne the testimony of its love and respect. A constitutional charter will re-unite all interests to those of the throne, and will strengthen the highest power by the concurrence of all inferior powers. You, Sire, know still better than we, that liberal institutions, so well tested with a neighboring people, give to sovereigns who are friends of the laws and fathers of their people, support, and not obstruction. Yes, Sire, the nation and the Senate, filled with confidence in the wisdom and magnanimity of your Majesty, desire, as you do, that France shall be free, in order that her sovereign may be powerful."

Louis XVIII. was at length reseated on the throne of his ancestors. He was no sooner there than, surrounded by the intrigues of the incurable coterie of Royalists who were countenanced and urged on by his brother, the Count D'Artois, he was impelled, by every persuasion and suggestion, to adopt a policy of re-action, in

which the most conspicuous absurdity Iwould have been an utter oblivion of the history of Europe from 1792 to 1814, and the most revolting baseness, the utter desertion and rejection of those by whose ability he recovered his crown. These intrigues were, at least in part, frustrated by the combined efforts of Mons. de Talleyrand and de Blacas.

duced them to respect those monuments of the arts which were the fruits of the latest victories of the French arms. He may be fairly admitted to have effected an able and advantageous arrangement, when it is considered, that while peace was established in Europe, the territory of France was evacuated by the invading armies, and her independence secured; the partisans of the Bourbons saw their monarchy re-established, the defenders of the Empire saw their interests preserved, and their rights respected, and the party of the Revolution saw its chief results maintained, and its principles acknowledged. Such were the results of the negotiations of M. Talleyrand at Paris.

After he had been nominated to the ministry of Foreign Affairs, he went in person, as plenipotentiary of France, to the congress of Vienna, where the territorial arrangement of the remainder of Europe was to be decided on. Arrived there later than the representatives of the other powers, he found the congress about to pronounce on the general distribution of territory, and to appropriate, at their pleasure, the spoils of the Empire, without reference either to the wishes or the interests of France. The representative of a conquered

The ultra-Royalists would gladly have rid the court of M. de Talleyrand, when the restoration had once been accomplished by the aid of his great abilities. The Emperor Alexander foresaw and feared these tendencies. The eminent services of Talleyrand were, however, too conspicuous to render his exclusion from the first cabinet of the restoration expedient, or even safe. Such an act of base ingratitude would not only have given disgust in France, but even to the allied courts themselves. Yet it must be admitted, that notwithstanding all that the King owed him, Louis XVIII. did not regard him with a friendly eye. Having no confidence in his integrity, he could not forget the share he had in the Revolution. The official decision which characterized the manners of Talleyrand-those forms by which he was able to impose his opinion, rather than tender his advice, notwithstand-state, and a feeble government, he was not ing the elegance and refinement with which all this was covered, displeased the King, who desired to have at least the semblance of acting for himself. At length, however, and not without much reluctance and some hesitation, the Portfolio of Foreign Affairs, always esteemed the highest in the Cabinet of the Tuileries, was offered by Louis to Talleyrand, and accepted.

Besides the advantages secured to the French nation by the charter, the country owes to Talleyrand important benefits obtained in the negotiations carried on soon afterwards for the territorial arrangement of France. The great powers, after the defeat of the French at Champanbert, ChateauThierry, Montmirail, and Montereau, refused to treat with Napoleon on any other basis than that of the ancient limits of the kingdom, that is to say, those of 1792. They now declined to negotiate on any other terms. Nevertheless, Talleyrand obtained from them the preservation of Avignon, and the Comtat Venaissin, the county of Montberliard, the department of Mont Blanc, composed of a part of the Savoy, and considerable annexations to the departments of the Ain, the Lower Rhine, the Ardennes, and the Moselle. He also in

in a condition favorable to the exercise of any influence which could disturb the unanimity of the great powers, or gain for his country that position and consideration of which her disasters had deprived her. The strength which he did not derive from his government, he nevertheless drew from his own eminent abilities, and the vast resources of his clear understanding.

Like all expert diplomatists, he varied his means with the circumstancesin which he found himself placed, and the parties with whom he was to negotiate. The reign of force had now ceased; the abuses of conquest brought that term into disrepute. Reason, justice, principle, were the leading ideas. Talleyrand, therefore, presented himself to the Congress, prepared to extort from it the admission of a broad principle, which he depended on his own ability to render fertile of after-consequences beneficial to France. This principle was that of legitimacy as opposed to conquest. He insisted on the acknowledgment of all those rights which sprang out of the past, in opposition to claims founded exclusively on victory. The partition of territory he contended must be effected on this principle, and not on the mere power of armies.

France by his influence over Louis XVIII., and by threatening him with what he might still be enabled to accomplish. Finding him, however, immovable, the emperor observed, with some petulancy, "Talleyrand is playing here the minister of Louis XIV."

When he arrived, four European powers | declared that he could never consent that only were represented in the Congress- the King of Saxony should be stripped of Russia, Prussia, Austria, and England. all his states by Prussia; and that Russia, He succeeded in augmenting the number by gaining the Grand Duchy of Warsaw, by the addition of France, Spain, Portugal, should push her frontiers to the Oder, and and Sweden, thus diminishing the prepon- thus menace, by her preponderance, the derance of the great powers by the counter- rest of Europe. The Emperor Alexander poise of several lesser states. He found vainly endeavored to bring him over to his that several important territorial arrange- own views, by calling to his recollection all ments were on the point of being adopted that he, the Czar, had accomplished for at the moment he joined the Congress. Thus it was agreed to recognise Germany as an independent federative body, to restore to Switzerland its ancient form, and to acknowledge its independence. Belgium, united with Holland, was to be erected into the kingdom of the Netherlands, under the Prince of Orange; Austria was to have In fine, the influence exercised by TalNorthern Italy, and to extend her influence leyrand was such, that Prussia, at length, over the central Italian states, in the per- in order to gain Saxony, offered to cede to sons of her archdukes and archduchesses; Saxony all the territory lying between the Sardinia was to receive Genoa, Sweden Sarre, the Meuse, the Moselle, and the was to get Norway, and England to retain left bank of the Rhine, which was to have those maritime places in different parts of been given her as a compensation, but which the globe which best accorded with her pushed her frontiers, in that direction, too. far from her centre. M. de Talleyrand, however, declined to accept this proposition, preferring to maintain the King of Saxony with a diminished territory, to establish him on the left bank of the Rhine. This has been considered as a serious error on the part of the great diplomatist. While the King of the Netherlands held Belgium, Bavaria, Spandau, the Germanic Confederation, Mayence, and Luxembourg, it is contended that it would have been more prudent to place between the Sarre and the Rhine, at a few days' march from Paris, a small state than a great one-a sovereign inoffensive from his weakness, than a power of the first order. Would it not have been wiser, it has been asked, to have thrown Prussia on the flanks of Bohemia, than upon the frontier of France? Would it not have been better to have created more rivalry between that power and Austria, by multiplying their points of contact in Germany, and by removing her further from France, to have afforded increased facilities for a future alliance.

commercial and national interests.

The questions respecting Saxony and the Grand Duchy of Warsaw, were still undecided. Prussia, which had gained accessions on both banks of the Rhine, claimed the former, and Russia, which had constantly been extending her territory during the wars of the Revolution and the Empire, demanded the latter, the population of which amounted to four millions, which the Czar designed to erect into the kingdom of Poland, with an independent constitution. Austria, without hesitation, had surrendered Poland, but had scruples about Saxony, while England, willingly enough, abandoned Saxony, but objected to the aggrandizement of Russia at the expense of Poland.

Talleyrand, seeing this state of things on his arrival at Vienna, soon succeeded, by adroit suggestions, in converting what were as yet only hesitations on the part of England and Austria into positive refusals, and out of those refusals arose dissensions between the great powers, which were combined only by fear, while, in reality, they were opposed by interest. Appealing to the principle of legitimacy, he sought to re-establish Ferdinand I. on the throne of Naples, and to protect the territory of the King of Saxony, the only German Prince who, being strengthened by Napoleon, had remained faithful to France, and who, moreover, was related, by the ties of blood, to the House of Bourbon. M. Talleyrand VOL. XII. No. I.

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To all this, it is answered, however, that Talleyrand really effected more by the course of negotiation which he pursued. He succeeded, as is admitted, in sowing division between the allied powers, and brought Austria and England to the joint determination to repulse the pretensions of Russia and Prussia, even by force of arms, if that extreme measure should be necessa