by L. Mühlbach
CHAPTER XVI.
THE TREATY OF CHARLOTTENBURG.
Queen Louisa was pacing her room in great excitement. At times she stoodstill at the window, and looked anxiously into the street as ifexpecting the arrival of some one. But that street--the main one inOsterode, in which city the royal couple had spent the last fewdays--remained silent and deserted. Large snow-flakes were falling fromthe cheerless, lead-colored sky, and the November storm was now sweepingthem into little mounds, and again dispersing them in clouds of whitedust. The queen beheld nothing but this winter scene; she sighed andreturned to her room to pace it as rapidly as before.
But she was constantly drawn to the window, gazing into the street andlistening breathlessly to any noise that reached her ears. "If he shouldnot come," she muttered anxiously, "or if too late, all would be lost,and the cowards and babblers would be able once more to persuade myhusband to yield to their clamor for peace. Heaven have mercy on ourunhappy country and on ourselves!"
Suddenly she started up, and leaned closer to the window in order to seebetter. Yes, she had not been mistaken. In the lower part of the streeta carriage was to be seen. The storm prevented her from hearing thenoise of the wheels, but she saw it--it drew nearer and nearer, andfinally stopped in front of the house. The queen stepped back, and,drawing a deep breath, she raised her eyes to heaven. "I thank Thee, myGod! Thou hast had mercy on my anguish," she whispered with a gentlesmile. She then walked slowly and faintly across the room toward thedivan and sank down on it. "Ah," she muttered, "this eternal anxiety,this unrelieved suspense and excitement are consuming my strength--nay,my life. My feet are trembling; my heart stands entirely still at times,and then beats again as violently as if it would burst from my breast.But, no matter! I am quite willing to die if I only live to see thedeliverance of my country and the preservation of my house." She droppedher head on the cushions and gazed with dilated eyes at the sky. But, onhearing a low rap at the door, she slowly rose and called out in herfull, sonorous voice, "Come in!" The door opened, and Madame von Bergentered.
"Well, Caroline, he has arrived, I suppose?" asked the queen.
"No, your majesty," said Madame von Berg, smiling, "_they_ have arrived.The two ministers, Baron von Stein and Count von Hardenberg request yourmajesty to grant them an audience."
"Hardenberg!" exclaimed Louisa joyfully, and her pale face brightened."Oh, let them come in--immediately!"
The queen quickly left the divan and walked toward the door. But Madamevon Berg hastened to reach it before her and opened it. "Come in,gentlemen," she said; "her majesty is waiting for you!"
"Yes, I am waiting for you," exclaimed Louisa, meeting them, and with asweet smile extending both her hands.
The ministers bowed and kissed her hand. Madame von Berg had in the meantime locked the door leading into the small anteroom, and withdrewsoftly by the opposite door.
"Then you received the message the king sent you?" asked the queen,turning toward Baron von Stein. "And you did not hesitate a moment tocome here? And you, count," added she, turning toward Hardenberg, "youdid the same as this faithful friend? Having heard that the decisivemoment had come, you did not hesitate to offer your services to yourking? Oh, I thank you, gentlemen; I thank you in the name of my husband,of my children, and of our country! In these days of danger anddistress, when all are wavering and fearful, it does my heart good tomeet with unswerving fealty and devotion. Ah, so many have provedfaithless and deserted us!"
"But so many also have remained faithful, your majesty," saidHardenberg, "so many have proved true and loyal!"
The queen gazed at him long and mournfully. "Few," she said, "alas, veryfew! You say so only in your magnanimity, because you do not care tomake your loyalty appear as something extraordinary. But, look around inPrussia--look at our fortresses! Everywhere treachery andcowardice--everywhere perfidy! I will not speak to you of Stettin, ofKuestrin, of Spandau, of Anclam, and Erfurt! You know already that wehave lost them. But have you learned the dreadful tidings we receivedyesterday? Do you know that Magdeburg has surrendered?"
"Magdeburg!" ejaculated Stein and Hardenberg, at the same time.
Louisa nodded sadly, and her eyes filled with tears. "It was our lastbulwark," she said, "and it is gone, too! I have wept much sinceyesterday. Now I will be calm, and force my grief back into my heart.But as Mary, Queen of England, said at the capture of Calais, 'If myheart were opened, you would find on it the name of _Magdeburg_ inbloody letters!'"[25]
[Footnote 25: Louisa's own words.--Vide "Queen Louisa," p. 316.]
"It is true," said Hardenberg, gloomily, "it is a great disaster. Afortress so well supplied with every thing, and a garrison of more thanten thousand men!"
"If your majesty will permit me, I ask, how did this intelligenceimpress the king?" said Baron von Stein.
"He bore it with resignation, and that calm courage which never leaveshim in these days of affliction," said Louisa, quickly. "But hisso-called friends and advisers, Messrs. von Haugwitz, Koeckeritz, Voss,and Kalkreuth, received the heart-rending news with secret satisfaction.I read it in their faces, notwithstanding the sadness they assumed. Theyregard the fall of Magdeburg as an ally of their intentions and schemes.They desire peace with France--peace at any price--and hope that theking will now approve their views. Hence, Minister von Stein, Madame vonBerg had to give a letter to the courier yesterday, in which I urged youto comply with the king's orders, and to come here immediately. Hence,Count von Hardenberg, I am glad that you have come too. Oh, I know verywell what it must have cost your noble heart to come without beingexpressly requested; but you did so for the sake of the crushed andprostrate fatherland--I know it very well--and not for Prussia, not forus, but for Germany, on whose neck the tyrant has placed his foot, andwhich he will strangle unless the good and the brave unite their wholestrength and hurl him off."
"I came here," said Hardenberg, "because I remembered that hour whenyour majesty permitted me to give an oath of unwavering fealty anddevotion--that hour when you condescended to accept my hand for ourleague against France, and when you vowed to exert yourself to the bestof your ability to maintain the policy Prussia had entered into, and notto suffer her king ever to accept the perfidious friendship of France!"
"I have never forgotten that hour," said the queen, gravely. "He whojoined us in taking that pledge at the solemn moment you refer to,Prince Louis Ferdinand, has sealed his vow with his death: he issleeping on the field of honor. But I feel convinced that he is lookingdown on us from heaven; and, if it be given to the spirits of theblessed to influence the affairs of mortals, he will instill his ardorinto our breast, and assist us in reaching the true goal. But what isthat goal? and what the true way? My short-sighted eye is not able todiscern it. When I behold the tremendous successes of the conqueror, Iam perplexed, and ask myself whether it be not evident that God willmake him master of the world, and whether, consequently, it be not invain to struggle against him? Oh, my soul is at times engaged interrible conflict with itself, and gloomy doubts frighten it. But I feelnow that we are on the eve of the crisis, and that the present day willdecide our whole future. Grand-Marshal Duroc will reach this cityto-day; Colonel von Rauch, who preceded him, has already arrived. Hedelivered to the king the treaty of peace, which M. de Zastrow andLucchesini concluded with Talleyrand at Charlottenburg. Napoleon hasalready signed it. Only the king's signature is wanting, and, as soon ashe affixes it, we are the friends and vassals of the emperor of France,and must either lay the sword aside, or, if he should command us to doso, draw it against Russia, our present ally. A stroke of the pen willdetermine the future of Prussia and the fate of my children. Now, helpme and all of us!--now, advise me as to what ought to be done! Tell meyour honest opinion as freely and sincerely as though you were standingbefore God! Count von Hardenberg, pray, speak first! Do you believe itto be necessary for the welfare of Prussia, of my children, and, aboveall, of my husband, that the king should approve the treaty?"
"Your majesty is a
ware that I never advised the king to form an alliancewith France," said Hardenberg, "and that my most sacred conviction willever prevent me from doing so. But, in order to pass an opinion on thetreaty of Charlottenburg, I ought to know its provisions, and yourmajesty is aware that the king has not permitted me of late to take partin the negotiations. I do not know what the treaty contained."
"Nor I either," said Baron von Stein, when the queen turned toward himwith an inquiring glance. "But I know those who concluded it; I knowthat M. de Lucchesini and M. de Zastrow believe no sacrifice, nohumiliation too great, if they can thereby succeed in making peace withFrance. I know that Talleyrand is wily enough to profit by theirweakness, their cowardice, and lack of true honor; and I know, finally,that if Napoleon signs a treaty of peace with Prussia now, it cannot butbe advantageous to him, and humiliating to Prussia."
"I will tell you what the treaty contains," said a grave voice behindthem.
"The king!" exclaimed Louisa, rising quickly and hastening to him.
He greeted her cordially, and gave her his hand. "I wished to see you inyour cabinet," he said, smiling, "and thus overheard the last words ofthe secret council which is held here."
Louisa blushed slightly; the king noticed it, and shook his head alittle. "It is quite agreeable to me," he said, turning toward the twoministers, "that the queen informs herself of the state of our affairsand of politics generally, consulting men in whose loyalty and devotionshe reposes confidence. We must know our fate accurately and thoroughly,in order to look it courageously in the face, and decide on suchmeasures as are most conducive to our welfare. Moreover, the queen hashitherto bravely shared all our dangers and hardships; it is, therefore,but just that she should take part in our consultations."
"Oh, my king and husband," exclaimed Louisa pressing his hand againsther bosom, "I thank you for your kindness and generosity. I thank youfor not sending me back into the narrow sphere of woman; for permittingme to look beyond the threshold of my apartments, and to have a heartfor the calamities of our country."
The king nodded kindly to her, and then turned to the two ministers, whohad respectfully withdrawn toward the door. "I invited you to come here,M. Minister von Stein," he said, "that you might participate in ameeting of the cabinet, at which our course in regard to the treaty ofCharlottenburg is to be decided. I am glad that you have come. And,"added he, addressing Hardenberg, "I am glad also that you are here. Ilike men who, conscious of their worth, are not irritated at beingseemingly neglected. I know how to appreciate the fact that you arestanding by us in these times of adversity, and not looking out only foryour own quiet and comfort. I am fully aware that you are not pursuingthis course from selfish motives, and that you are rich enough to livewithout any public position--richer, perhaps, than your king! Well, thequeen requested you to give her your opinion about the treaty ofCharlottenburg, and I came in and interrupted you."
"Your majesty heard that these gentlemen assured me they were ignorantof the contents of the treaty," said the queen, fixing her beaming eyeson the calm, grave face of her husband; "your majesty, on entering theroom, were kind enough to say you would communicate the contents to us."
"I will do so, to keep the gentlemen posted," said the king--"not,however, as king, but as a friend, whom you, Louisa, will authorize totake part in the deliberations of this secret council of state. Hence,let us proceed without any regard to etiquette. I did not want topreside over, but merely to attend your consultation, and to tell youwhat you are ignorant of. Resume your seats, therefore."
"And you, dear husband!" asked the queen, sitting down again on thedivan, "will you be so kind as to take a seat by my side?"
The king nodded, and sat down by her side, while the ministers tookseats opposite. "Listen, then, to the terms of peace," said the king."The Emperor Napoleon demands the whole territory situated on the rightbank of the Vistula, from the point where the river enters the Prussianstates, to its mouth. Besides, he demands the surrender of thefortresses of Kolberg, Hameln, Nienburg, Glogau, and Breslau; thecession of the whole of Silesia, on the right bank of the Oder, with thegreater part of the section of this province lying on the left bank ofthat river. He, moreover, demands the city and fortress of Graudenz; herequires all the Prussian forces to withdraw to Koenigsberg and itsenvirons, and that the Russian troops shall evacuate our statesimmediately. After all these conditions have been complied with in themost scrupulous manner, either side is to be at liberty to resumehostilities ten days after giving due notice thereof."[26]
[Footnote 26: Vide "Prussia in the Years 1806 and 1807"--a Diary, byH.V. Schladen, p. 57.]
The queen, no longer able to suppress her agitation, uttered a cry, andturned toward her husband with glowing cheeks and flashing eyes. "Andwhat does he offer us in return for all these humiliations?" she asked."How is he going to reward us for selling to him our provinces, ourfortresses, and our honor?"
"In return," said the king, slowly, laying stress on every word--"inreturn, he holds out to us the prospect of marching soon as his allyagainst Russia, and of supporting the Ottoman Porte. A second note,which Talleyrand drew up in the name of his master, and communicated toour envoy, was added. This note stated that, inasmuch as France, owingto constantly renewed wars, as well as her allies, Spain and Holland,had lost their most flourishing colonies in Asia and in the West Indies,and were compelled, for the fourth time, to fight in their own defence,justice and reason authorized the emperor to seek compensations on thisside of the seas for the losses he and his allies had suffered, and tolook for these compensations in those countries which, by virtue of hisvictories, he had the power to dispose of in such a manner as he deemedbest. The greatest evil which Prussia had brought about by the last war,for which she alone was responsible, was the fact that the Ottoman Portehad been deprived thereby of its independence; for, owing to theinsulting and threatening demands of the Emperor of Russia, two princes,who had been justly banished from the possessions of the Sultan, hadbeen placed at the head of the government of the Danubianprincipalities, so that Moldavia and Wallachia were at present nothingelse than Russian provinces. 'Accordingly,' concludes Talleyrand's note,'so long as the Sultan should not have recovered the legitimatesovereignty over these provinces, the emperor would not consent to giveup any countries which the fortune of war had placed in his hands, orwhich he might conquer hereafter.'"[27]
[Footnote 27: "Memoires d'un Homme d'Etat," vol. ix., p. 341.]
"That is to say," exclaimed the queen, passionately, "that Napoleondeclares war against Russia, and, if we make peace with him, we musttake up arms against that empire."
"That will be inevitable," said the king, composedly. "Besides thisnote, Talleyrand communicated some important information to ourambassadors. He told them that Napoleon, before setting out from Berlin,would issue a decree, absolutely prohibiting all commerce with England,and ordering, further, that all letters coming from or going to thatcountry, addressed to an Englishman, or written in English, were to bestopped at the post-office; that all goods, the produce of Englishmanufactures, or of English colonies, were to be confiscated, not onlyon the coast, but in the interior, in the houses of the merchants bywhom they should be retained; that every vessel, having only touched atthe English colonies, or at any of the ports of the three kingdoms,should be forbidden to enter French ports, or ports under subjection toFrance, and that every Englishman whatsoever, seized in France, or inthe countries under subjection to her arms, should be declared aprisoner of war.[28] Now," added he, in a subdued tone, "I have finishedmy communication. You know the treaty of peace, and every thingbelonging to it. You will be able to form a definite opinion with regardto it; you can, accordingly, fulfil the queen's wish, and tell herwhether you would advise me to sign it. Speak! and remember that here,in this room, I am not the king, but only the queen's friend, happeningto be present at your consultation. It, therefore, behooves me to besilent, and to listen."
[Footnote 28: Thiers, "Consulat et Empire," vol. vii., p. 8
80.]