Napoleon in 1812 -
Chapter 105:
19. EuropeanSummit – 2
Naples was thefourth largestcity in EuropeafterLondon, Paris, and Constantinople. Therulerofthis place wasJoachim Murat, the son of an innkeeper, who eventually became Marshal of France andKing of Naples.
His position evaluated by European politics wasonly oneofthe lords of the FrenchEmpire’snumeroussatellite states, but he thoughtofhimself as theking of an independent country and wasacting likethat.
“I waswondering whatthe hellyou werethinking… but you were preparing a surprise party likethis? And ahuge party at that, that’sgoingtomake thewholeofEurope buzz!”
It was a weekbefore the Minister of theAdministrationCarnot delivered a speech calling for thenecessity of peace among European countries in theImperialCouncil. Joachim Murat smiledwhen he received a letter andinvitation from the TuileriesPalace.
The letter, engraved witha pattern symbolizing the Bonaparteimperialfamily, containedNapoleon’s ambition to prepare aplacetodiscuss balanced development andpeaceinEurope, along with abriefgreetingtoMurathimself.
Napoleon seemedtowant to make thisbanquet, whichwas scheduled to be held at the Rohan PalaceinStrasbourg, the headquarters of Europe.
Itwas added thatitwouldbea place forall European countryleaders to attendand discussthe future, regardless of thenationalpower, governance, and reputation of their countries.
In short, itmeanttorecreatethe ConferenceofDresden[1], whichbrought together allthe French allies, satellite states, and descendants of prestigious European families ahead of theRussian expedition in 1812…
Murat, who was basicallyanignorantman but hada not-so-shortcareer in Parisian politics, immediately doubted Napoleon’sintentions.
‘Resolution of a peace regime at this time? Napoleon wrote this? That’s nonsense!’
Obviously, he guessed thattherewouldbesomething elseinsidious, butMurat’s limitations were onlyuptohere.
That was whyMuratoftencalled the head of Salernocourtfor advice when he needed a political sense that was beyondhis capability.
“Thisisa plan to ‘distinguish between goodand bad’ led by His Majesty the Emperor of the Empire. The difference is thatthe scale is the whole of Europe.”
The head of the court read Napoleon’sinvitation closely, thought for a moment andreplied like this.
“Distinguishing betweengood andbad?”
“Yes, Your Majesty. To be exact, it shouldbeseen as an actofclearly distinguishing between enemiesand allies. Althoughithas not yetmade an official position, the Empire will surely wage awar againstBritain. Before that, it seems to be lookingfor comrades who will jointhe war.”
Napoleon’s letterwas mainly about peace andharmony on theEuropeancontinent, butthe headofSalerno court spoke of warwithout anyhesitation. His opinionwas likethis.
“British provocationscannot be tolerated by theEmperor. Also, the Empire hasnointention of compensating forthe damage demanded by Britain. TheBritish know that, too. War is inevitable, and thetwo countries aresecretlypreparing for it.”
Nevertheless, it wasclearwhy the British did notwant to declare war. This wasbecause they wanted Francetobreakthe Treaty of Madridfirst. Naturally, itwas to insist on theinternational communitythat they had justifications forwar.
France would first createanexcuse for them to go to war, and if the treatywas broken, Britain would be able to raise the will of its ownpeople to wagewar while gainingsupport from other powers.
However, this one move by Napoleon was powerful enoughtooverturnBritain’s planatonce.
“The harmonyand coexistence of European countries arenothing butpretty words. Perhaps thisisa justification for installing the next great strategy… That’s what I think.”
“That’sright. Although the Emperor has changed alot, even his belligerent spiritand desire to conquer havenot disappeared.”
“Bringingtogetherthe rulers of allEuropeancountries is ahigh-level intimidationtothem, asthey have to choose whether to follow or opposeanordercoming fromthe French Empire.”
The Roman Empireinthe pasthad usedthe samemethod. Therulers of all provinceswere brought together at oncetopraise themand at the same timetoestablish hierarchical relationships. Theprovinces who opposed the call wererepaid withfierce retaliation, punishment, andeven purges.
The countryrulers mustknow this. What it meant to refuse Napoleon’s call, and theheavyconsequences thatwouldcome forthem.
“Ahem… Is there anychoice for ourcountry?”
“…It goeswithout saying, YourMajesty. Wemust stand by theEmpire’sside no matterwhat.”
The headofSalerno court sighedinwardlyatthe ignorant and greedyking andexplained thatthe Empire’s allies andsatellite countries were completelydifferent. Murat, whether he liked it or not, had to participate in Strasbourg’sbanquet andserveasa decoration as Napoleon’sfaithfulsubordinate.
Murat, alow-borncommoner, was able to become King of Naples thanksentirelytoNapoleonand his sister, Caroline.
But what if he wentagainst Napoleon andwalked on his ownpath? The anti-French countries would welcome it withopen arms, butJoachim Murat’s reputationand credibility would falltothe ground.
No, before that, the Frenchwouldcrushthe ItalianPeninsula to punish thetraitor. Seeing Murat lostinthoughts, the head of the court felt frustrated, but he wasgratefulthat hisking wasnot stubborn.
In the end, JoachimMuratand his wife Caroline Bonaparte decided to participate in the Strasbourg banquet. Of course, none of theFrench satellite countriesrefused to participate.
JózefAntoni Poniatowski of the Kingdom of Poland, Eugène de Beauharnais, Viceroy of Italy, Joseph I ofthe KingdomofSardinia, Jérôme Bonaparte of theKingdom of Westphalia, andothermonarchsofthe Confederationofthe Rhine expressed their willingness to attend.
Muratswepthis chest away, thinking thathealmost became a loner, andthe headofSalerno court lookedslightlypitifully at his king.
===
Allcountries of the European continentgatheredinone place to forma commoncouncil andrebuild thevalueoforder, coexistence, andharmony forthe future.
Thetopicraised by François Carnotwas enough to heat up the whole of Europe.
And his speechthat becamea hottopicwas named ‘Carnot’s Declaration’. It was notthat there hadbeen no attempt to unite Europe so far.
Frederick II, theEmperor of theHoly Roman Empire, had proposed theidea of an alliedarmy involvingall European countries to counter the Mongolinvasion, and beforethat, Pope Gregory VIII had issued a seven-yearceasefire in Europe andhad urged all European powerstoform a crusadetoretake Jerusalem.[2]
However, thereason why Carnot’s Declaration wasessentiallydifferent fromthesetwo previous cases was that he was askingtoform a council.
Frederick II and Gregory VIII were motivatedbywars based on grand causeswith Christianvalues, askingfor aEuropeanunityfor thispurpose, but Carnot’s Declaration preached peace, harmony, andfuture values of theEuropeancontinent to preventthe tragedyofwar itself.
JohannWolfgangvon Goethe[3]: “The European springthat we’ve been waitingfor is finallyhere. A land of cultureand philosophyfull of logic, order, dialogue and consultation, not a battlefield dotted with guns, slaughter, and malice, will unfoldinStrasbourg!”
Julian Ursyn Niemcewicz: “I’ve always thought thatonly extraordinary figureswith great will could block the blood waves flowing in Europe. Weare now livingthe mosthistoricmoment since the birth of theLord Jesus Christ.”
Pierre-Paul Prud’hon: “ProudcitizensofFrance, ourcountry is so great that eventhe title of ‘theGreat’ is insufficient, sowewill have to findsomething else. If you don’t know whattodonow, just shout ‘Vive Sa Majesté !’ and sing the national anthemofthe Empire.”
Antonio Salieri: “I reallywant to seethe future of Europethat theEmperor of theEmpire willlead. I’m surethe end will shine brightly likethe HolyGrailand willbeassweetasNectar, thedivine drink.”
Georg Wilhelm Friedrich Hegel: “Martin Luther’s Ninety-five Theses[4]reformedreligion, changedEurope, andchanged theworld. As I listenedtoFrançois Carnot’s speech, I realized that we wereata turning point likethen.”
Europe’sleading celebrities viewedthis holy challenge with an extremely favorablegaze. For those who were immersed in the Enlightenment ideas, human equality, and romanticism, Napoleon andthe French Empirewere saintschallengingthe ideal theyhad onlydreamed of.
In recentyears, the atmosphere of France exudeda strongscentof‘freedomand equality’, and Napoleon’sattitudedeviatedfrom authoritarianism and despotism, respectingcooperationand representation. As a matter of fact, theabovechange lefta deep impressiononrenownedEuropeanphilosophers, artists, andscholars, and Carnot’s Declaration wasits highlight.
So far, no European monarchhad sought coexistence andharmony withinEurope. Butsuch ideas were directly led by thehead of a hegemony countrywho could surpassall neighboring countries with power and influence? It was unimaginable.
When thetime andluck matched and thecountry reached its heyday, the monarch of agreatcountry wasalways immersed in the warofconquest.
That hadbeen thecase forMehmet II, GustavII Adolf, Louis XIV, and evenFrederick the Great, who was praised as an Enlightenmentmonarch.[5]Making the country strong wasonly a means of invasion and conquest, and no one seriouslyconsidered thelivesofunknown, ordinarypeople.
France nowalso hadthe power to trampleonothercountries and to continue itsconquest. The Frenchhad aterrifying force that would scare the entirecontinent as longasthey mobilizedtroops.
Nevertheless, Napoleonand their cabinetcame up with the bannerofpeaceand harmony, citing thecauseofthe common people’s lives andthe joint development of the continent.
Itwas for this reason that Austrian, Prussian, Russian, and evenBritish celebrities praised Carnot’s Declaration. What was thenoblevalueofthe French Empireunless it was a true‘revolution’?
On the other hand, monarchs andpoliticianspaid attentiontoFrance froma slightly differentperspective. Theyknew betterthan anyoneelse that there was no goodwill without national interest, andthey hadalready learned the inhumanity, cruelty, andcoldnesscontained in it.
If Napoleon really wantedpermanent peace in Europe, hecouldjust maintain thecurrent state. Sacrifice the overall purposefor aillusoryideal? It was somethingthat could never happen.
“It mustbea play to showoff the power of theEmpire and theEmperor himself.”
“I think it’s intended to unite friendly forces beforethe war against Britain.”
“It is presumed to be a disguised offensive, talkingaboutpeaceinthe front and preparingfor war in theback.”
Foreign ministries of eachcountry naturallydoubted France’s intentions while making these predictions. Intelligence organizationsoperating inside Francewere eager to obtainadditional information.
European monarchs andrulers struggled to grasp Napoleon’s trueintentions beforedecidingtoparticipateinthe Strasbourgbanquet.
Soon after, as announced, invitations arrivedfrom theBonaparte imperial family to leaders of eachcountry. The moment of decision hadarrived.
===
The invitations sentbyFrance could be largelydivided into three categories. The first wassent to France’s satellitestates.
Napoleon sentthem an invitation assuming thatthey would naturallyparticipate. It included requests on how to help the imperial event at theStrasbourg banquet.
The secondwas senttoneutral countriesthat hadlittle to do withFrance. Theinvitation included howthe participationofthe talks would return to their national interestsand how it would affectthe supportofcitizensinthe currentsystem.
It could resemble asolicitation to attractcustomers, butitwas certainly attractive for them. Theproblem wasthe invitationsent to France’s ‘formal’ allies.
“Thisisabsolutely tyrannical and rude! It’s an insult to thespirit of Brandenburg, where theGreatPrince (FriedrichWilhelm) stoodupright on theland, that’s whatI’m saying!”
“Whatkind of vulgarwordsare those inside of HisMajesty’s palace? Watchyour words andactions, Prince of Wahlstatt!”
“If you hadtrulyassistedHis Majestyand the kingdom correctly, I wouldn’t have to comethis far!”
The manroaring wasGebhard Leberechtvon Blücher[6], with grayhair anda redface. The possible emergence of a European Councilhad caused theover 70-year-old mantojump up andrun to the BerlinPalace.
His reckless demeanor wasunhindered even in the palacehall (even if theking hadnot yet entered). Therewas no one to stop him because of his age, career, militaryrank, whichwas the best in the Prussian army, andbecause he wasstronglysupported by the main influential figures.
“His Majesty is entering. Everyone, please showcourtesy.”
Withthe announce of aservant, Friedrich WilhelmIII[7]appeared witha face thatcouldnot hidehis tiredness. Heentered thehall, sat on the throne, and openedhis mouth.
“Prussia is in trouble, it’stime forthe wit andwisdom of the ministers.”
The court meeting was about to begin after theking appeared.
“I’m sorry to interrupt, Your Majesty. TheViscountofBuckingham (the Britishambassador) askedfor the permission to enter.”
“Your Majesty! TheCountofBoulogne(the Frenchambassador) isalso waiting at the entrance of thehall to meet YourMajesty.”
Friedrich WilhelmIII’sface wasfilled withannoyance.
TL notes
[1]ConferenceofDresden
[2]Frederick II,Pope GregoryVIII
[3]Johann Wolfgang vonGoethe,Julian Ursyn Niemcewicz,Pierre-PaulPrud’hon,AntonioSalieri,Georg Wilhelm Friedrich Hegel
[4]Martin Luther:Ninety-fiveTheses
[5]Mehmed the Conqueror,GustavusAdolphus,Louis XIV,Frederick theGreat
[6]GebhardLeberecht von Blücher
[7]Friedrich Wilhelm III of Prussia
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