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Prince Talleyrand and His Times



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(* * y *'*</*<*



PRINCE TALLEYRAND
AND HIS TIMES



BY



FREDERIC LOLIEE

AUTHOR OF "GILDED BEAUTIES OF THK SECOND EMPIRE,

''THE LIFE OF AN EMPKESS : EUGfSNIE DE MONTIJO,"

" LE DUG DE MORNV," ETC.



ADAPTED BY

BRYAN O'DONNELL, M.A.

WITH PHOTOGRAVURE AND FIFTEEN OTHER PORTRAITS




LONDON

JOHN LONG, LIMITED

NORRIS STREET, HAYMARKET
MCMXI



CONTENTS



PAGE



AUTHOR'S PREFACE . . . .... 15

ADAPTER'S PREFACE . . . .... 19

CHAPTER I
TALLEYRAND'S CHILDHOOD AND EARLY YOUTH

The youth of Talleyrand A necessary preamble The Talleyrand -
Perigords and their genealogical pride Two distinct examples
of it The early youth of Charles -Maurice Family ambition
and carelessness are in strange conflict in the pursuit of his
education How he joined the Church against his will
His career at the College d'Harcourt His year's residence with
the Cardinal-Duke Archbishop of Reims, a residence the object
of which was to make him cherish and appreciate the dignities
of the Church At the Seminary of Saint Sulpice A period of
melancholia A happy diversion in his youth : his first love
affair The divinity student and the actress Mile Luzy
Talleyrand's frame of mind when he took Holy Orders The
Abbe at Court His worldly debuts at Versailles and Paris
A description of society towards the end of the reign of Louis
XV Madame Du Barry Reims Splendid ceremonial of the
consecration Talleyrand's studies at the Sorbonne The
daily occupations of a Sorbonne student at the end of the
eighteenth century Talleyrand resumes his social pursuits . 21

CHAPTER II
FRENCH SOCIETY UNDER LOUIS XVI

French society under Louis XVI A happy period A sketch
of the early years of the reign of Louis XVI Portraits and
details concerning Court matters The state of mind of the
aristocracy on the eve of the Revolution Talleyrand's
favourite houses Madame de Montesson The house in the
Rue de Bellechasse A struggle for life, fortune, and success
Talleyrand, Narbonne, Choiseul-Gouffier Ties of the mind and
of the heart The sensitive Comtesse de Flahaut and the
eloquent Madame de Stael Love and ambition Talleyrand's
methods of performing the duties of Agent-General to the
Clergy How his colleague, the Abbe de Boisgelin, enjoyed
long rests in the house and company of Madame de Cavanac



2066140



8 Prince Talleyrand and His Times

PACK

Talleyrand's appointment to the Bishopric of Autun How
the King opposed his nomination The closing of the Reign
The reasons which urged the Bishop of Autun to leave Paris
and to visit his diocese His reception A Bishop and Member
of Parliament How Talleyrand secured a majority which sent
him to Parliament ......... 47



CHAPTER III
TALLEYRAND AND THE REVOLUTION

The National Assembly The King and the Revolution Talley-
rand and Mirabeau A slight misunderstanding between two
great men The period of 1789 Important part played by
Talleyrand His return to the " Constituante " The famous
debate upon the alienation of Church property, which drew
upon the head of Talleyrand the indignant fulminations of the
whole Clergy His popularity in Paris The feast of the
federation and the celebration of Mass on the Champ-de-Mars
Talleyrand's relations with the Clergy of Saone-et-Loire after
he had voted in favour of the civil Constitution being applied
to all Priests How these relations ended eventually He
resigns the Bishopric of Autun The late Prelate and mighty
Lord becomes a Deputy and a diplomatist His two missions
to England Arduous negotiations The Brion incident How
all the results so laboriously achieved were negatived on the
loth of August Talleyrand's explanations in Paris His
third departure to London Some details concerning his
intimate life and social relations in the English capital : the
emigrants belonging to his party His pleasant sojourn in
Surrey, the Colony of Jupiter Hall Life becomes less easy in
London The threatened Alien Bill Decree of expulsion
Talleyrand's enforced departure for Philadelphia ... 80



CHAPTER IV
THIRTY MONTHS IN AMERICA

On board ship An agitated crossing Talleyrand's impressions
of Philadelphia and other cities of America, and of the
Americans His business trips and other excursions How
he lived or rather existed Talleyrand's land speculations
He solicits commissions abroad His distractions in Phila-
delphia His return to France Incidents of the voyage
Arrival at Hamburg Madame de Flahaut's fears lest the
meeting should be of too intimate a nature A table d'hote
story from the Hotel de PEmpereur Talleyrand's return to
Paris . . . 120



Contents 9

CHAPTER v

SOCIETY UNDER THE DIRECTOIRE

PAGE

Talleyrand's surprise on his return to France Existing social
conditions Strange changes in the respective customs of all
classes, and also in the fashions of the day Talleyrand makes
the best of it all His visits to the " Merveilleuses " A sketch
of There"se Tallien, of the handsome Caroline Hamelin, and of
a third beauty of the day The successes of Society women
Talleyrand's answer to Madame Dumoulin Other social circles
The enormous influence of women under the Directoire
How Talleyrand succeeded in making the best use of
it Madame de Stael, the Directoire, and Barras Madame
de StaeTs repeated efforts to obtain from the young
" Director " the appointment of Talleyrand as Minister for
Foreign Affairs Three versions of the same incident, those
of Barras, Talleyrand, and Madame de Stael The true facts
of the case Talleyrand as Minister of the Directoire His
position proves less independent than he would have
wished He is precluded from effecting his one great
object, the pacification of Europe His first relations with
Bonaparte A description of the festivities held at the Hotel
de Galliffet in honour of the signatory of the treaty of
Campo-Formio Some interesting details concerning this
function How the campaign of Egypt originated Talley-
rand's initiative and complicity in the matter His secret
understanding with Bonaparte An early interview preceded
the latter's departure for Egypt Talleyrand's return to
Government departments His leisure time His official
relations with Directorial society The Luxembourg Mme
Tallien's cottage Josephine's mansion in the Rue Chantereine
"The constitutional ladies " Talleyrand's downfall and his
subsequent efforts to serve under another regime. Bonaparte's
welcome return The preliminary intrigues of the coup d'etat
The overthrow of the Directoire, and the advent of Napoleon
Talleyrand's share in these events, and his intimate opinion
about them 135



CHAPTER VI
OFFICIAL AND PRIVATE LIFE UNDER THE CONSULATE

Inception of the new political reorganization Talleyrand
recalled to the Foreign Office The condition of Europe when
Bonaparte left for Saint-Bernard During the master's absence
Fears concerning " The Secret Crisis " or, in other words,
"The defeat or death of the First Consul " Plots and intrigues
How the sky suddenly cleared after the victory of Marengo
Talleyrand's negotiations with Austria and England The



io Prince Talleyrand and His Times

PAGE

signature of the Treaty of Amiens The result of long and
arduous labours The cool and simple way in which the
Minister informed the Chief of the State of the success achieved
France becomes reconciled with Europe and the Church
General and private interests fostered by Talleyrand in the
important matter of the Concordat His long correspondence
with the Roman Chancery with a view to obtaining the Brief
of Secularisation Bitter controversies upon the marriage
of Bishops Objections raised by Rome. The Press and diplo-
matic means employed in order to obviate this difficulty
Premature rumours concerning the marriage of Talleyrand
The consecutive circumstances which brought about this
conjugal event The antecedents of Madame Grand before she
became Duchesse de Talleyrand-Perigord, Princesse de
Ben event After the marriage Comments passed upon it
in the salons of the Foreign Office Truth and fiction con-
cerning the ingenuous nature of Mme de Talleyrand The
different phases of this union until its decline Talleyrand
returns to public life 180



CHAPTER VII
THE DAWN OF THE EMPIRE

1802 Fouche's downfall causes intense satisfaction to Talleyrand
The influence at that time wielded by the Minister of Foreign
Affairs The Courtier and the politician Talleyrand becomes
the intermediary between the nobility and the Master of the
Tuileries The beginning of the Consular Court Revival of
social life The salons of the day M. de Talleyrand and the
Princess de Vaudemont His receptions at the Hotel de
Galliffet The part he played during this brilliant period of
the Consulate His early apprehensions concerning Bonaparte's
future relations with Europe Talleyrand alters the course of
France's foreign policy The Peace of Amiens is denounced
The last year of the Consulate Death of the Due d'Enghien
Imputations made against Talleyrand's character The real
historical truth concerning them 228



CHAPTER VIII

THE ZENITH OF NAPOLEON'S POWER
IS NEAR AT HAND

Talleyrand's exalted position in the years 1804-1805 His
harmonious and intimate relations with the Emperor Their
work in common Bonaparte's growing ambition The French
Empire and the German War Talleyrand's departure for
Strasbourg His journey to Vienna after the victory His
short residence at the Chateau de Schonbrunn Diplomatic



Contents 1 1



PAGE



overtures Napoleon rejects Talleyrand's advice to spare Austria
and to beware of the wiles of Russian diplomacy The diplomat's
impressions on the field of battle at Austerlitz Napoleon reads
his Paris correspondence on the day of his triumph The
difficulties which Talleyrand had to overcome before obtaining
the treaty of peace at Presbourg From Presbourg to Tilsitt
Talleyrand compelled to follow the Emperor to Berlin and to
Poland A halt at Warsaw before the holocausts of Eylau and
Friedland Balls and entertainments given during the rainy
season A ball at the house of Prince de Ben event Hostilities
are resumed Talleyrand gradually dissociates himself from
the interests and plans of Napoleon His reason for doing so
The Tilsitt illusions The Emperor's secret Napoleon,
Talleyrand, and the Queen of Prussia Return to France
Napoleon deprives Prince de Ben event of the portfolio of
Foreign Affairs and appoints him Vice-Grand-Elector The
consequences of this change Talleyrand is consoled of this
semi-disgrace by his additional titles and increased wealth . 253



CHAPTER IX
THE NAPOLEONIC COURT

The Emperor's Palace Talleyrand resumes the duties of Lord
Chamberlain The exalted duties and petty subjections per-
taining to his Office His Majesty's " Etiquette " Curious
rivalries at Court and the part played by Talleyrand in re-
conciling them Descriptions of the Court A State reception
at the Palace of the Tuileries Under the first Empire A
group of high dignitaries The Imperial Family The ladies
of the Palace Madame de Remusat and Talleyrand Some
beautiful guests Napoleon's behaviour towards them Sad
impressions caused by a great picture 290



CHAPTER X
IN THE WINGS AT ERFURT

Public opinion in 1 808 First signs of opposition in the Emperor's
surroundings after Baylen and Cintra Systematic evolution of
Talleyrand A secret understanding with Austria, with a view
to checking Napoleon's spirit of adventure in the East Erfurt
The Mission of Prince de Ben event Conflicting policies of
Napoleon and Talleyrand How Prince de B6n6vent secretly
worked for the success of the latter, while entrusted with that
of the former The hostile part he played in Paris, and his
endeavours to restrain, even with the help of the foreigner,
the breakneck ambitions of Napoleon Intrigues and deser-



12 Prince Talleyrand and His Times

PAGE

tions at home during the Spanish campaign Talleyrand's
public reconciliation with Fouche A conversation which was
overheard Napoleon's sudden return The famous scene at the
Tuileries Disgrace of Talleyrand 316



CHAPTER XI

TALLEYRAND'S SECRET PART IN THE OVERTHROW
OF THE EMPIRE

A busy period of inactivity Talleyrand is summoned to the
Council on the occasion of the Imperial divorce The Austrian
marriage and its results Imperial difficulties at home and
abroad Termination of the Russian Alliance Talleyrand's
remarks on the morrow of Moscow The beginning and the end
Intrigues and plots conceived with a view to hastening the
climax Condition of France in 1813 as described in private
letters The counterblast of Leipzig Talleyrand refuses the
Emperor's offer of the portfolio of Foreign Affairs The last
days of the Empire Prince de Benevent's numerous visitors
Aimee de Coigny, Duchesse de Fleury, the Bourbons' Am-
bassadress Her morning conversations with Talleyrand His
reasons for espousing the cause of the Bourbons The Council
of Regency A last advice to Marie-Louise How Talleyrand
was able to remain in Paris to receive the Emperor of Russia
as his guest in the Rue Saint Florentin, and thus become the
most important statesman in France His public work before
his departure for the Congress of Vienna 340



CHAPTER XII
NAPOLEON AND TALLEYRAND

An obvious parallel Napoleon's different impressions and judg-
ments on Talleyrand A period of confidence and intimacy
Capricious changes in Napoleon's character Epistolary
effusions of Talleyrand to the First Consul How so much love
was spoilt Early quarrels The motives and results of then-
dispute Napoleon's violence His frigid, sullen and calculating
enmity towards Talleyrand An impartial judgment upon
Talleyrand's behaviour towards Napoleon Reproaches of
venality and of treachery hurled at the Statesman The
moral personality of Napoleon His appalling principles
deprive him of all claims to gratitude A last point of
comparison in favour of the man of peace compared with the
man of war .......... 370



LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS

M. CHARLES-MAURICE DE TALLEYRAND . . Frontispiece

PACING PAGE

MADAME DU BARRY . . . ... 32

THE COMTE DE PROVENCE IN THE ROBES OF GRAND-
MASTER OF THE ORDER OF SAINT LAZARE ... 44

MADAME ADELAIDE, DAUGHTER OF Louis XV. ... 56

M. DE TALLEYRAND (FROM A MINIATURE BY ISABEY). . 68

THE IOTH OF AUGUST, 1792 (THE STORMING OF THE

TUILERIES) . . ..... 92

MADAME MARIE ADELAIDE DE BOURBON, DUCHESSE

D'ORLEANS (1753-1821) . . . ... 104

A PORTRAIT OF TALLEYRAND TAKEN IN 1801 . . . 204
MADAME GRAND, PRINCESSE DE TALLEYRAND . . .216

PRINCESSE CHARLOTTE DE ROHAN, WIFE OF THE Due

D'ENGHIEN . . ..... 244

THE Due D'ENGHIEN AS A BOY . . ... 248

MADAME ARNAULT, A GUEST AT THE IMPERIAL COURT . 276

NAPOLEON THE FIRST IN HIS IMPERIAL ROBES . . . 292

MADAME DE TALLEYRAND . . . ... 304

PRINCE DE BENEVENT, LORD HIGH CHAMBERLAIN . . 342

PRINCE DE METTERNICH . . . ... 356



AUTHOR'S PREFACE



TALLEYRAND was a genius of many parts, second
only to the great Napoleon in the influence he
wielded during a period unique owing to its great im-
portance. The name of the great statesman is printed
upon each page of the history of that period, and his
proteiform image, although apparently wearing the same
set mask, has been reflected in numberless sketches
which have thrown light upon all its facets, imparting
to it both brightness and variety. We have therefore
deemed it interesting to draw a picture of ensemble
representing him both in his individual and multiple
capacities, as he witnessed and took part in the various
social transformations that occurred during his long
life.

The versatility of Talleyrand's character has whetted
many activities. Much has been written concerning
his moral personality, his thousand and one views,
and his wit, but it seems difficult to express every-
thing concerning a physiognomy so complicated not
only by its own nature, but by the numberless events
which it reflected.

The life of such a man is necessarily many-sided,
and it is no easy task to throw full light upon all its sub-
divisions. The task had to be accomplished, however
imperfectly. It is many years since Sainte-Beuve com-
mented in the following terms upon a splendid analysis
of Talleyrand, written by Bulwer-Lytton :

"It is not articles or essays that should be written
about Talleyrand, but a whole book, a weighty
volume."



1 6 Prince Talleyrand and His Times

When he expressed this opinion, and sketched the lines
upon which the work should be written, we were not
yet in possession of the famous statesman's memoirs,
invaluable documents, though doubtless mutilated to a
great extent, inaccurate on many points and subject
to query in many cases. The pages of honour relating
his diplomatic work had not yet been unearthed by
scholars like G. Pallain and P. Bertrand. No revelations
concerning his private life had then come to light. The
substantial chronicles of the Duchesse de Dino and the
many documents found in the archives and published
by Albert Sorel and others have given a fresh impetus to
the work of modern historians.

We have been unable to compass the whole of this
weighty subject in a single volume, and have been com-
pelled to treat it in two separate parts without, however,
breaking the train of thought or the sequence of the
narrative. The second volume begins with an account
of the Imperial liquidation, which was mainly caused
by Prince de Benevent, on the eve of the famous
Congress of Vienna, which coincided with the inception
of his second public career.

This present volume is complete in itself, and relates
the details of his education, the curious period of pre-
paration for the Priesthood and a compulsory Episcopacy
effected amid a round of worldly pleasures and the pursuit
of worldly business. We next come to the important
part played by Talleyrand during the Revolution, to
his missions to London, his most unwilling journey to
America, and his return to France amid the turbulence
caused by the methods of the Directoire. His doings
as a Minister under the Government of " The Five "
and under the Consulate, and the principal events of
the Empire in which he took part, either openly or secretly
in order to combat or to defend it, form part of the narra-
tive. Its gaps are filled in with restful halts, consisting
of pictures of the various periods which represent in
their intimate sincerity the variations of French society
under the different regimes through which he limped



Author's Preface 17

with a lame leg, but with eyes wide open. Finally, a
parallel study of Napoleon and Talleyrand affords a
comparison of two natures as opposed to each other
as could be, the one embodying the all-devouring genius
of war and conquest, the other representing the power
of calm and weighty reasoning used in behalf of a
methodical ambition.

The second volume will deal with the opening pro-
ceedings at the Congress of Vienna, an interval between
two tragedies. Facts, impressions and the influence
wielded by Talleyrand during the first and second Restora-
tions, his last evolution in favour of the Orleans dynasty,
his residence as Ambassador in London, which was the
crowning of his dearest and most enduring wish, his
period of retreat in the princely home at Valensay, under
the tender care of the Duchesse de Dino, his witty sayings
and interesting recollections with the hosts of Valenay
or Rochecotte, some worldly sketches of the Court and
the Salons, the supreme dual episode, the conversion of
the last hour, the almost theatrical death of this great
actor, and, finally, a general appreciation of the man and
his work, both of which have given rise to diverse opinions,
such are the subjects which fill the closing chapters of our
study.

Our work has been done in a spirit of accuracy, im-
partiality, and fairness towards the memory of one upon
whom have been lavished the for and against of excessive
praise and excessive blame, the latter often assuming the
proportions of violent invective.

The novelty of this long work resides mainly in the
way in which it is treated, providing in the course of
one and the same narrative full details upon the private
life of Talleyrand, while not neglecting the study of the
social circles in which it had its being under eight different
regimes or forms of Government.

Thanks to a secret but authentic link, we have been
enabled to connect its latter developments with our
studies of the history, customs and doings of a later
period called the Second Empire.



1 8 Prince Talleyrand and His Times

With all his seductiveness and his faults, with his
supine dilettantism, his solid qualities and his moral
chasms, Morny will appear in reduced proportions as a
family portrait with a strong resemblance to his natural
grandfather, Charles-Maurice de Talleyrand-Perigord.

FREDERIC LOLIEE

PARIS, June, 1911



ADAPTER'S PREFACE

IT has been my privilege to collaborate with Frederic
Loliee in his works upon the Second Empire. When
endeavouring to introduce it to the British public in the
garb of the English language, I am conscious that failure
has often attended my efforts to preserve the grace,
the lightness, the wit of the original version by placing
upon its shoulders the heavy weight of an idiom quite
foreign to the expression of Gallic thought. If I have
attempted the difficult task once more, it is because
the present subject lends itself to treatment in all tongues.
It is comparatively easy to lay before the British public
the history of a life so absorbing as that of Talleyrand,
so intimately linked to that of Napoleon, the overpowering
genius of war, and so closely connected with the history
of our own country during that period in which England
stood practically alone as the defender of Europe's
liberty and independence, against the repeated onslaughts
of an insatiable ambition.

This work is so replete with matter of pregnant interest,
so alive, so palpitating, so absorbing, that the brilliancy
of the matter treated will, I trust, obtain forgiveness for
the poverty of its treatment at my hands.

The history of Talleyrand's life is in truth the history
of the world's events from 1775 to 1832. Moreover, it
contains the roots of subsequent events which were but
the boughs that sprang from the trunk, the offshoots,
the effects of the cause, the natural conclusions, in many
cases foreseen and foretold by the greatest diplomat of
his time. Talleyrand's all-absorbing activity did not
confine itself to the study of French questions alone.
As Foreign Minister, he endeavoured to shape Napoleon's
policy, and to impart to it some moderation and some

19



2O Prince Talleyrand and His Times

regard for the benefits of peace. That his efforts were
fruitless was proved by the fact that the conqueroi of
the world breathed his last as a prisoner of war upon