50. Directory and Consulate
CHAPTER L. Directory and Consulate (1795-1800)
Before the fall of Robespierre, it had always happened that each great change in the course of the Revolution had been made by some one rising up against the people who had till then been chiefly carrying on the government, driving them out, and taking the power from them; but now the Convention, which was the Government, had all the strength on its side. After Robespierre's death a number of people suddenly showed themselves, who had been hiding out of sight till the Reign of Terror should be over. They all became Thermidorians, and in particular, there appeared a large troop of young men, ready to fight for the Convention, and keep down any tumult or disturbance that might arise, who were called the Gilded Youths, because they wore bright clothes, and made themselves look very gay. They carried clubs with lead at the end, and were always ready to fight with the Jacobins, whom they usually managed to drive away when fights, did happen between them. If some of the young nobles and other people, who were attacked at the beginning of the troubles, before the Bastille was taken, had been able to fight like this, it is very likely that the worst horrors of the Revolution might have been prevented.
The executions stopped, and, by degrees, order came back into Paris. People began to dress themselves well, to give dances and festivals of all kinds, and to amuse themselves as they had not cared to do while the Revolution went on. There was one kind of dance called the Victim's Dance. No one might come to it who had not lost some relation by the guillotine, and every one who was allowed to be present wore a band of crape round his arm, to show that he had some victim to mourn for.
The Jacobins were driven out of their hall, and allowed to hold no more meetings there, which caused fresh rejoicings all over France. The prisoners who had been sent up from the different parts of France just before the death of Robespierre, so that they had escaped being put to death as he meant them to be, had terrible stories to tell of all that had been going on in the different provinces. All over the country the same (kind of) troubles had happened as those of which we hear so much in Paris.
The war in La Vendue had come to an end, the Royalists there had been beaten by the Republican soldiers, and all the chief leaders of the Vendéans had been either killed in battle or put to death. The war of France with the countries round — Germany, Austria, and Prussia — was still going on, and after the execution of Louis XVI., England had also declared war against France.
There was great distress in the country, as there was very little money and a great want of food, which made the people restless and angry with the Government They were stirred up by the Jacobins, who had still a little power, though their hall was closed, to attack the Convention and ask for bread, and for the carrying out of the laws that had been made by the National Assembly two years ago, before the death of Louis. On the 20th of May they rushed into the hall of the Convention with loud shouts, and killed one of the deputies, but they were driven back by the body of Gilded Youths, who came to help the Convention, and their leaders were taken prisoners and put to death.
The Convention now began to make what was called the Constitution, that is, a set of laws, arranging the government of the country for the future. The Convention itself was to come to an end, having lasted since the trial of Louis, which was about three years. The chief governors of France were to be five men called Directors, of whom one was to leave the Government every year, and a new one to be chosen in his place, so that there was to be a constant change. They were to be chosen by two large councils, who were also to help them with the work of governing the country, and to turn them out of their places if they behaved improperly. There was some resistance to this arrangement in Paris, but the Convention were strong enough to make every one submit to them at last, and when all was settled, (they) gave up their power (, the Convention) came to an end, and the Directory began to rule over France.
The Directory kept its power for about four years, during which time the affairs of the country did not go on specially well. What was chiefly wanted in France now was some man, strong and clever enough to make other people obey him, so as to be able to put an end to the confusion which had followed the Revolution. All the old ways of carrying on government had been overturned, and the work of planning new ways and carrying them out was so difficult, that it could not be done by any common person. Just such a man as had been wanted now appeared, and though he afterwards showed qualities which brought much trouble upon himself and his country, there is no doubt that at this time he did for France what no one else could have done so well, and helped the country out of the great difficulties into which its violence had brought it.
His name was Napoleon Bonaparte, and he was born in the island of Corsica. His father was a private gentleman; and he himself was brought up at a school for young soldiers, and sent into the army as soon as he was old enough. At school, his masters soon found out that he was unusually clever and thoughtful. He was specially quick at learning mathematics, but was also very fond of reading, and thought about other matters besides what were wanted for a soldier's business. Soon after he joined the army the Revolution began, and he was in Paris the day that the people broke into the Tuileries, on the 21st of June, when Louis XVI. stood for so many hours behind the table with the red cap on his head; and also on the 10th of August, when the Swiss Guards were attacked by the people and put to death.
Soon after this he was sent to help in a siege that was going on against the town of Toulon, of which the English had made themselves masters. An old French general was besieging this town, who knew scarcely anything about his business. He was very glad to ask advice of Captain Bonaparte, though, when it was given, he was so stupid that he could hardly be made to understand it. Bonaparte undertook to manage the siege by himself, and succeeded so well that the town was soon taken, and the English driven out of it.
He was afterwards sent to Italy, where he was again of so much use that he was at last made general of the army there. In Italy his great powers showed themselves more and more. He always thought of unexpected ways of coming up with the enemy when they (thought) him far away; of cutting off one division of the enemy's army from another; and of moving his own men about more quickly than had ever been done before. The soldiers were delighted at the victories to which he led them, and soon became devoted to him. They used to call him the Little Corporal, and had many stories about his courage and kindness to his men, and his readiness to take part in everything they did. Once, when one of his gunners was killed in besieging a town, Bonaparte stepped into his place, and fired the cannon himself for some time; and he would often show the men how to point the cannon, and encourage them by always appearing himself when they were in the greatest danger.
One of his first battles was fought and won on a wooden bridge, called the Bridge of Lodi; one of the principal streets in Paris is now called after another of his Italian victories, the Rue de Rivoli; and there were others too many to mention. The list of Bonaparte's battles lasts through almost the whole of his life, and is a long one. For many years he almost always won the battles in which he commanded. His soldiers fought better under him than they would have done under any one else. Before going into battle he often made them a little speech, by which he so much pleased and excited them, that they called out eagerly to be led against the enemy at once; and his kindness at other times made them all feel him to be their friend, as well as admire him as the greatest soldier they knew.
One night, after a long and anxious march, Bonaparte felt too anxious to sleep, and went out to visit the outposts. He found a man who should have been keeping watch asleep at the root of a tree. Without waking him he took the gun from his hand, and watched himself as sentinel for about half an hour, when the man woke, and was terribly frightened at seeing what had happened. The general only said, "My friend, here is your musket; you have fought hard and marched long, and your sleep is excusable, but the army might be ruined by a moment's inattention. I happened to be awake, and have held your post for you. You will be more careful another time." It was such stories as these that his soldiers delighted to tell one another about him. Many years afterwards some one repeated this story to Napoleon, and asked him if it were true. He said, "No, certainly not; I was far too tired that night to do anything of the kind. I should have been more likely to be asleep than the sentinel." However, there is no doubt that the story was told of him for many years; and it shows the opinion his soldiers had of him.
By the end of the second year Bonaparte had defeated the enemies he had been sent to fight in Italy, and a peace had been made. He himself went back to Paris, and found the Directors in great trouble and anxiety, for they had begun to quarrel with each other, and the Government did not go on well. They soon grew jealous of General Bonaparte, who was looked upon as a hero by all the Parisians. They determined to send him away again, and gave him the command of an army which was going to (attack) Egypt, as part of a great attack which they were preparing against England.
The army was the same with which he had been (fighting) in Italy. The men were worn out and tired with all they had had to do already, and no one but Bonaparte could have kept them in a good humour, and have prevented them from losing courage among the deserts of Egypt, where they suffered from heat, thirst, and illness, besides being so many hundred miles from their homes, and in a place so unlike any they had ever seen before. However, they fought and gained a great battle against the Turks and Arabs, who were the soldiers of the country, and who were some of the best and fiercest horsemen in the world; it was called the Battle of the Pyramids. After this (battle) Bonaparte was called in the country Sultan Kebir, or King of Fire, in memory of what the Turks suffered from his muskets.
But while this went on inland, the English admiral. Nelson, brought a large fleet of ships to the coast of Egypt, and fought a battle against the French fleet in the Bay of Aboukir. The battle was a very fierce one; it lasted for twenty hours, and went on through the whole night in spite of the darkness, though each ship could only just see the ship against which for the moment it was fighting. A great French ship called L'Orient was blown up just at midnight. The tremendous noise of the explosion was heard all through both fleets, and was so awful that for a few minutes the battle stopped entirely, and no gun was fired; then it went on again as before, till at last the French were completely beaten, and had only two ships left.
Still Bonaparte kept up his own and his soldiers' courage. He stayed in Egypt about a year, fought several battles, and besieged several towns, some of which he took. He conquered a good part of the country, and was then obliged to go back to France, where important events were happening, and to leave the army in Egypt to the care of one of his generals.
When he arrived in Paris he found that the Directors had brought themselves into such difficulties that it was impossible for them to carry on the Government. All the soldiers in Paris were his friends, and many of the chief men were willing to (try and) change the Government, and give the power, for a time at all events, to him. Bonaparte had two of the Directors for his friends; he was first made commander-in-chief of all the troops about Paris, and soon after the Directors gave up their power, and it was settled that there should be three men named Consuls, after the old Roman consuls, who should carry on the Government, and of whom Bonaparte should be the chief, and should be called First Consul. His power was to last for ten years, after which other consuls were to be chosen.
From this time Bonaparte, who now began to be called Napoleon, grew stronger and stronger every day. He behaved already very much as if he were King of France; and the people who, ten years before, had risen up in rebellion against Louis XVI., and had resolved to have no more kings in France, were now tired out with all the horrors they had brought upon themselves in their struggle, and were willing to submit to the only man who seemed strong enough to keep the country in order. The soldiers, too, who would have obeyed no one else, always obeyed him.
France was still at war with England, Austria, and Italy. Napoleon left the other consuls to take care of affairs in France, and went himself with an army over the Alps to Italy, sending another army to Germany. His crossing the Alps was a wonderful feat, which took all his enemies by surprise, as it had been supposed that at that time of year it was impossible. The passes were slippery with ice and snow, so that it was hard enough for the (men of the army) to get over themselves, even if they had not had to take their arms, luggage, and food with them. The heavy cannon were especially difficult to manage; but all the difficulties were overcome at last, and the First Consul and his soldiers marched down into the plains of Italy. Here Napoleon gained one of his most famous victories at the battle of Marengo; and a few months afterwards his general in Germany won another great battle at Hohenlinden, which is (known from) Campbell's poem— "On Linden, when the sun was low," etc. After these two defeats of Marengo and Hohenlinden, the Germans agreed to make peace, and a treaty was signed at a town called Luneville, by which all the country between the old boundary of France and the Rhine was declared to belong to France.
When Napoleon went back to Paris he found most of the people his warm friends and admirers; but he still had enemies, both among the Royalists and the Jacobins. The Royalists went so far as to make a plot to murder him, which very nearly succeeded. They filled a cart with gunpowder and shot, put it in a street through which Napoleon was to drive one evening to the opera, and when they saw his carriage near put a lighted match into the cart and left it to explode as he passed. Fortunately, his coachman was tipsy, and drove faster than usual, and the explosion did not happen till half a minute after the carriage had passed. Twenty people were killed, several wounded, and windows broken on both sides of the street. Napoleon persisted in going on to the theatre, where he appeared looking as calm as usual; and the people, having heard of what had happened, received him with loud cheers, and every sign of joy at his escape.
The war still went on with England, though the peace of Luneville had put an end to it as far as Austria and Italy were concerned. Some of the northern countries, in particular Denmark, joined in a league to help Napoleon against England. The English, under Lord Nelson, attacked the Danish fleet at Copenhagen, and entirely defeated them in a battle known as the Battle of the Baltic. Soon after this battle a peace was signed at Amiens between England and France. There were great rejoicings at this event in both countries; and now, at last, there was peace all over Europe.
Napoleon now turned his thoughts to many matters which had to be settled in France. He restored many of the old customs which had been overthrown by the Revolution. The expressions Sir, Madam, Mr., and Mrs., which had been given up by the Jacobins, began to be used as before. Citizen and citizeness were (left off). Napoleon also made friends with the Pope, and brought back the Roman Catholic religion into France. The churches were opened, the priests were recalled or new ones chosen, and Sundays were observed again. Napoleon also set up schools, and took great pains to make a new code of laws, to (make) roads and public buildings, and to improve the country in every way. At the same time his ambition began to show itself more and more. He had done so much that he imagined he could do everything, and was always interfering in the affairs of other countries, and trying to win fresh glory and honour for himself.
At this time he and the other consuls governed with the help of three bodies of men who were supposed to give them advice, and to have some control over the affairs of the country, but there was really scarcely any one in France who dared to resist Napoleon in anything. Soon after the peace of Amiens it was decided that he should become consul for life, and it was afterwards decided that he should have leave to choose himself an heir to succeed him when he died, as it did not seem likely that his wife Josephine, whom he had married many years before, would ever have any children.
Unhappily, peace only lasted for one year. Napoleon was gaining fresh power in one country after another. He had now interfered in the affairs of Switzerland, and the English, who saw him growing stronger and stronger, were afraid that soon all Europe would be in danger from him. They refused to give up to him the island of Malta, which had been promised to him by the treaty, and thus the war began again. As soon as war was declared, the English seized a great number of French ships which happened to be in English harbours. Napoleon, in return, took prisoners all the English travellers he could find in France, of whom there were as many as ten thousand, for there had been no idea that the peace would end so soon, and every one wished to go and see the country where there had been war for so many years, and where no Englishman could have travelled before since the Revolution. All these innocent people were thrown into prison, and some of them were kept there for many years before the French Government could be persuaded to let them go.
Napoleon then made a scheme for attacking the English in their own country. He collected together a great number of boats at Boulogne, opposite Folkestone, where the straits between England and France are so narrow that it is possible to pass from one side to the other in a few hours. He also collected a large army of soldiers, and made every possible arrangement for their being taken across to England and marching upon London. His difficulty was to escape the English ships, which would try to prevent his crossing. Many people would not believe that Napoleon really thought of invading England; still, the English sent Lord Nelson to watch carefully over all that was done by the French ships, and the young men of England became volunteers, and learned to march and shoot and perform all the duties of soldiers, so as to be able to help the regular army if there was need for it.
However, Napoleon had other matters to think of besides invading England. The old friends of the Royalists, who had been living in England, and had always been more or less plotting against him, made a more serious plot than usual, and some of them went to France and made friends with some others of Napoleon's enemies, who hated him because they were Republicans, and wished for that form of government. A plan was made for killing the First Consul, but he found it out, seized Georges Cadoudal, the chief Royalist plotter, and had him tried, several of his friends, and put to death. It was very difficult to catch Cadoudal, for he was specially clever at all kinds of disguises, and the story of his adventures is very interesting one.
After his capture, Napoleon committed what is perhaps the worst and most cruel action of his life. A young prince living in Germany, called the Duke d'Enghien, was the friend of the Bourbons, the brothers of Louis XVI. He was living quietly out of France, and there was no reason for thinking that he had been in any way concerned in the plot. But some of the prisoners had spoken of a stranger whose name they did not know, and who used to come and join in their plots against the First Consul; and Napoleon thought, or pretended to think, that this might have been the Duke d'Enghien, and, glad of some excuse to show his strength and be revenged on an enemy, he had the duke suddenly carried off from his home in Germany, brought to Paris, tried in the middle of the night and, without any just reason, declared guilty of treason, and instantly put to death. Scarcely knowing of what he was accused, he was taken out into a courtyard and shot by the soldiers. This cruel and wicked act of Napoleon's made him enemies all over Europe. Soon after this the people were persuaded to ask, Napoleon to become Emperor of France instead of First Consul. He, who had first proposed the idea, of course at once agreed to it, and the Pope was persuaded to come to Paris and crown him solemnly at Nôtre Dame. His wife Josephine was Empress, and he was to be succeeded on the throne by some member of his family. Thus France came back to the same kind of Government that it had had before the Revolution, only with Napoleon on the throne instead of Louis XVI. Napoleon's reign, as it must now be called, will be finished in another chapter.
