Authors: Simon Scarrow
THE GENERALS (86 page)
‘I have to confess,’ Lord Whitworth crossed his legs as he drawled, ‘His Majesty’s government is perplexed by France’s refusal to sign a commerce treaty between our nations.’
‘How can I agree to that, when you still remain in Malta?’ Napoleon responded. ‘Surely you can see that it is hard to justify a new treaty to my people while the previous one remains to be honoured?’
Whitworth tipped his head slightly to one side. ‘The situation has changed.’
‘No it hasn’t. Your forces are still there. A handover within three months, you said. Then you said you could not leave until a Grand Master of the order had been named. When the Pope sanctioned the new Master, you refused to ratify the appointment. When I offered to permit Neapolitan troops to provide a neutral force of occupation, you refused to let them land on the island.’ Napoleon paused and sighed.‘Lord Whitworth, France has acted with great patience in this matter, but her patience is not without its limits. So, tell me, when will England return Malta to its rightful owners?’
‘Ah, well,’ the ambassador responded awkwardly. ‘The thing is that His Majesty’s government has decided that since the initial period of three months has expired the terms of the treaty no longer apply.’
‘What?’ Napoleon responded sharply. ‘Explain yourself.’
‘It is, of course, our honest intention to quit the island. However, given that the terms of the treaty have failed to cover the present situation, England asserts that it is within its rights to retain possession of Malta.’
‘What rights?’ Napoleon snorted. ‘You have no right to be there.’
‘I beg to differ, sir.’
‘Your continued occupation breaks the spirit and the letter of the treaty and you know it.’
‘That is your opinion.’
‘It is the opinion of every rational man in Europe!’
Before Whitworth could respond to the sudden flaring up of Napoleon’s temper Talleyrand interrupted. ‘The First Consul is right, my lord.There is no worth in your government’s position, and everyone knows it.Yet I can understand your attachment to Malta. It holds a certain strategic importance to the Royal Navy, and as the new Grand Master happens to be Tsar Alexander, you are understandably nervous about providing Russia with access to the Mediterranean, especially given her interest in the disintegration of the Turkish empire.’ Talleyrand paused, and then smiled. ‘Is that a fair approximation of your government’s concerns?’
Whitworth gave a slight nod of assent. ‘I will agree that it is, for the sake of argument.’
‘Then, for the sake of argument, will you not also accept that the possible benefits of continued occupation would be as nothing compared to the vast cost in lives and wealth - should your failure to honour the treaty provoke a renewal of hostilities?’
‘Are you threatening England, sir?’ Whitworth’s tone was angry. ‘Do you desire war?’
‘No, my lord. Do you?’
‘Of course not.’
Napoleon stabbed a finger at him. ‘Then give up Malta.’
Whitworth shook his head. ‘England will not agree to that. Not yet at least.’
‘If not now, when?’
There was a brief pause before Whitworth replied, ‘Not for seven years.’
‘Seven years?’ Napoleon’s eyes widened in surprise and anger. ‘Seven years! You are joking, my lord. Surely?’
‘I assure you I am not, sir.’
‘This is an outrage!’ Napoleon clenched his hands into fists and leaned forward in his chair so suddenly that Talleyrand feared he might strike the ambassador. He rose to his feet and stepped between them.
‘Gentlemen, for pity’s sake, lower your voices.’ He gestured towards the lawn where some of the guests had turned to look towards the arbour following Napoleon’s outburst. Talleyrand continued, ‘We must subordinate our tempers to reason.The fate of Europe depends upon it.’
Napoleon glared at him for a moment, then, lips pressed together in a thin line, he forced himself to sit back and loosen his fists. Talleyrand waited a little longer, until calm seemed to prevail, then turned back to the ambassador.
‘My lord, it seems to me that Malta is not the real issue of substance here. Perhaps your country feels that France poses some kind of threat to the interests of England. If you might try to explain your grievances in more detail then we might yet progress to a better understanding.’
Whitworth considered the idea and nodded. ‘Very well, sir. But be aware that, even though I know the mind of my political masters, I do not speak for them. What passes between us here is no more than an informal exchange of views. Agreed?’
Talleyrand turned to Napoleon with a questioning look.‘That is agreeable, citizen?’
Napoleon nodded, still frowning at the ambassador. ‘Go on.’
Whitworth cleared his throat and began. ‘Despite the treaty, England is concerned that France is not resolved to make peace. We need to trade with Europe, yet we find that the First Consul seems determined to place every obstacle he can in the way of English commerce with the Continent. Then there is our concern over the territorial ambitions of France. In recent months you have annexed Piedmont, Elba, Holland and Parma. We wonder what lands will be gathered into your arms next. Especially since you seem determined to reduce the number of German principalities and draw them into the sphere of French influence. And what of your wider interests?’ He stared directly at Napoleon as he spoke. ‘Our ambassador in Spain has noted how you have resorted to the most undiplomatic threats in order to get the Spanish to return your territory of Louisiana in the Americas. As we speak, a large French army is busy putting down a slave revolt in San Domingo. Surely you must undestand our anxiety over so strong a force in a region where we have far fewer troops? From our side of the Channel, it seems that France is merely using the peace to prepare the ground for war. Put yourself in our position and you must surely agree that our concerns appear to be well warranted.’
‘I understand that well enough.’ Talleyrand nodded. ‘But I assure you, France relishes the current peace, and is merely settling outstanding affairs in order that she can enjoy the benefits of the growing harmony between the interests of our nations.’
‘What harmony?’ Whitworth shook his head. ‘Whatever harmony remains is withering, not growing.’
‘Then it is urgent that we do all we can, as swiftly as possible, to repair the situation. So tell us, what would His Majesty’s government ask of France in order to ease the tension between us?’
Napoleon watched Whitworth carefully as the Englishman collected his thoughts and responded. ‘Open the ports of Europe to our ships and our merchants. Settle your revolt in San Domingo and bring your army home. And return those lands you have annexed to their former owners.’
‘He asks for the moon!’ Napoleon protested to Talleyrand, then rounded on the ambassador. ‘And if we gave in to those demands, would you return the favour? Would you abandon Malta? Would you stop sheltering the émigrés who spill their bile into the foul pamphlets that appear on our streets? Oh, don’t think I don’t know who is funding their lies.The same source of money that buys arms for the Vendée rebels, and no doubt provided the means for those bastards who tried to assassinate me. You shelter them in the Channel Islands, and it’s your ships that land them on our shores to spread their mischief. Is England prepared to accept that France is no longer the land of the Bourbons? Is England prepared to recognise that France is at last a free nation?’
‘A free nation?’ Whitworth smiled mockingly. ‘A free nation, under Bonaparte. What exactly is the difference between an absolute monarch and a First Consul for life?’
‘The difference is that
I
was elected by the people.’ Napoleon raised his chin. ‘I embody their will.’
I
was elected by the people.’ Napoleon raised his chin. ‘I embody their will.’
‘Really? And who is to say that His Majesty does not embody the will of our people?’
‘Then why don’t you ask them?’ Napoleon smiled coldly. ‘Why don’t you ask your people? Unless you are afraid of what they might say.’
Whitworth stared at him in silence for a moment before replying. ‘The common people are not in possession of the knowledge or the will to act in their own interest. Until they are, their social superiors will determine their best interests, and those of England as a whole.’
Napoleon shook his head. These aristos were all alike, from one side of Europe to the other. Arrogant, greedy and desperate to hang on to the power handed to them by their ancestors.They would fight to the last breath rather than permit a man like Napoleon, with all his natural advantages of intellect and ambition, to remake their archaic nations into more efficient and fair societies.
Talleyrand looked from one to the other with a growing sense of despair. There was no shred of reconciliation between them, and his heart felt heavy at the inevitable fate awaiting the peoples of France and England. There was nothing more he could do to try to bridge the gap this day. He would have to wait until the immediate tension had bled out, and then try again.
He stood up. ‘Gentlemen, we have spoken enough.The other guests will fear there is something amiss unless we return to the party. For their sakes, I beg you, we must behave with cordial affection, while peace still has a chance.’
He gestured towards the distant gathering of guests, clustered around Josephine on the lawn. Napoleon bowed his head curtly towards the ambassador and left the arbour, striding back across the neatly cut grass. Whitworth stared after him, and muttered, ‘I rather fear that man may prove to be as much your problem as he is ours.’
Then he set off at a far more leisurely pace, as if he was idly admiring the features of the garden as he ambled back towards the other guests. Talleyrand was still for a moment, his eyes fixed on Napoleon as he contemplated the last words of the ambassador.
The year ended with no sign that the English were willing to quit Malta. In January Napoleon decided to increase pressure on them and gave orders for the preparation of an expedition to the last remaining French territory in India at Pondicherry. There might still be a slender chance of winning back some ground from the Earl of Mornington and his brother, Arthur Wellesley.
The public delight over the previous year’s peace treaty was daily turning into fear of the outbreak of a new war and Napoleon felt compelled to address the senate and the assemblies of the tribunes and deputies on the matter of the relations between France and England.
Standing before them on the podium, as the dull grey light of a winter’s day filtered through the windows, Napoleon sensed their anxiety and need for reassurance. He set out the grievances of France and stressed the danger of England’s continued support for those who sought to destabilise the consulate and undermine all the benefits that Napoleon and his government had brought to the people. At the end, as grey clouds thickened over Paris and ushers began to light the candles inside the hall, Napoleon concluded his address.
‘You all know me best as a soldier, and yet I tell you there is no greater ambition in my heart than that France may enjoy everlasting peace and prosperity.There could be no greater gift to this nation of ours than a generation that has never known the ravages of war in its lifetime. But what value is such peace if the honour of our nation is debased by the pernicious propaganda and provocations of England?’ He paused and turned his gaze on Lord Whitworth sitting in the visitors’ gallery, so that no member of the audience could be in any doubt where his final remarks were aimed. ‘It is the tragedy of England that her houses of Parliament are riven by two factions. On the one side there is a peace party, dedicated to the benefits and rewards of a universal peace. On the other side is the war party, comprising mean and bellicose spirits in whose hearts there resides an implacable hatred of France. If the war party seizes control in the coming months then the blood of countless innocents will be on their hands. If there is war, then history will judge that the cause of it will be England, not France. And if there is war, then I give my word that France will prevail and our armies will utterly humble those who have forced us to take up arms.’
The applause was muted and solemn, as Napoleon had anticipated. This was no rallying call for an attack, but a grim warning that France must be ready to fight an enemy who seemed utterly relentless. As he acknowledged the clapping that echoed round the chamber Napoleon saw Whitworth rise from his seat. Their eyes met and Whitworth shook his head with regret before he turned and climbed the steps towards the exit.
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