Philip G. Dwyer - Napoleon: Passion, Death and Resurrection 1815-1840

BY THE SAME AUTHOR

Citizen Emperor: Napoleon in Power, 17991815

Napoleon: The Path to Power, 17691799

Talleyrand

Violence, Colonialism and Empire in the Modern World (co-editor)

War Stories: The War Memoir in History and Literature (editor)

Theatres of Violence: Massacre, Mass Killing and Atrocity throughout History (co-editor)

Napoleon and his Empire: Europe 18041814 (co-editor)

The French Revolution and Napoleon: A Sourcebook (co-editor)

Napoleon and Europe (editor)

Modern Prussian History, 18301947 (editor)

The Rise of Prussia, 17001830 (editor)

For Andrea

Contents

Yes! where is he, the champion and the child

Of all thats great or little wise or wild;

Whose game was Empire, and whose stakes were thrones;

Whose table Earth whose dice were human bones?

Behold the grand result in yon lone Isle,

And, as thy nature urges weep or smile.

Byron, The Age of Bronze (1823)

In the evening of 23 July 1815, the Bellerophon

Maitland received instructions from Lord

Whether it was by this or other means that news of Napoleons arrival reached the shore, it was impossible to keep his presence a secret for long. Officers of the Bellerophon, such as Midshipman

The crowds were so thick that, on 26 July at three in the morning, less than two days after arriving in Torbay, Maitland received the order to move the ship to Plymouth Sound. It became obvious then that they were not going to be allowed to land (since he was being sent further away from London). If there was any doubt in the minds of some in Napoleons entourage, they soon realised that they were prisoners when, on reaching Plymouth, two boats full of armed seamen were placed on watch around the Bellerophon.

Plymouth was likely to attract more people, but it was in more secure surrounds. By the time the Bellerophon reached Plymouth, coaches full of people from London and the surrounding areas were travelling down to get a glimpse of the man maligned by the English press for the last fifteen years. They lined the beaches, put out in whatever boats they could hire, and generally pressed as closely as possible to the Bellerophon. The day of 27 Ju The only day that the crowds did not turn out was on Saturday 29 July, when thick weather had set in. The waters around the Bellerophon were empty except for the guard boats.

He went back down below deck. He may have been dejected; it was the first time he had appeared before the English public unshaven.

Napoleon was the international celebrity

Napoleon quickly learnt to play to the crowds, appearing regularly on deck at around five or six oclock every evening, acknowledging the people by raising his hat and bowing. Of course, there were not only Plymothians present, but English people from all quarters of life.

It was not just the gawking crowds that Napoleon played to; he was playing to the British on the national scene as well.

The British had been at war with France for over twenty years, and more than half that time with Napoleon. Their fascination for him, tinged with a degree of horror or fear, reached its paroxysm in that week in August 1815.

A number of exhibitions, as well as publications, paintings and prints depicting various aspects of the Napoleonic wars appeared in England and Europe after the fall of Napoleon in 1815, which greatly contributed to the development of both the black and the gilded legends. The battlefield

The Prussian officer Major

A booklet on sale at the exhibition forewarned the reader of what to expect: The diversity of thought that must arise, and the energy of those feelings that must be involved in regarding this object, surpass those which could be excited by almost any other upon earth. Cruikshank, from making fun of the visiting crowds.

Alongside the carriage were items that had been captured with it the four large brown horses that had drawn the carriage, personal

The fascination for Napoleon in England is in stark contrast to a considerable body of critical works what is referred to as the black

These sensationalist narratives, designed in part to legitimate the restoration of the Bourbon monarchy in 1814, flourished in the first years after their return. The author of the Apothose de Napoleone Bonaparte calculated that the letters in his name added up to 666, the sign of the devil.

Napoleons apparent popularity among the English, however, did not facilitate the task of the British government, which had to decide what to do with him, a debate documented in the English press.

The first rude awakening Napoleon got about his situation was the discovery that Gourgaud, who had arrived at Plymouth on 22 July, was refused permission to land. It is true that Captain Sartorious had taken a copy of Napoleons letter to the Prince Regent, but no answer had been forthcoming. If the Prince Regent accepted it and entered into a correspondence with him, then the British government would have to deal directly with the former Emperor himself in any discussions about his future. If, however, the letter was not officially received, as was the case, then it meant that the government did not formally recognise Napoleon and could go about organising his fate without consulting him. In the end, the government never acknowledged receipt of the letter, despite the fact that it somehow found its way into the newspapers.

The lack of communication with the mainland increased the discomfort felt among Napoleons party; it was completely at odds with the deference he had been shown on board the Bellerophon. The newspaper accounts were another rude awakening. Gourgaud, who came on board the Bellerophon on 24 July, brought with him a bunch of newspapers. of Vienna in 1815 the allies declared Napoleon liable to public vengeance.

Reading these reports in the English newspapers would have increased the unease felt by Napoleon and his party. It would be difficult to describe our anxiety and our torment, wrote Napoleons chamberlain, Emmanuel de Las Cases, most of us seemed hardly to be living: the least circumstance that came from land, the most vulgar opinion of anyone on board, the least authentic newspaper article was the subject of the most serious arguments and the cause of constant swings between hope and fear. He knew full well that newspaper accounts were not government policy and should therefore not be taken too seriously. There were other more encouraging signs that the English would receive them well, including the boatloads of sightseers that had ventured out to see him.

That was not to be. The British government had to decide what status to impose on Napoleon, that is, whether he was to be treated as a European sovereign, as a simple general or as an outlaw, and whether he was to be held prisoner in England, sent back to France or banished to another place of exile. The prime minister, Lord Liverpool had been present during the storming of the Bastille in Paris as a young man in 1789 and associated all things revolutionary with the mob. As a result, he was not inclined to show Napoleon any leniency. The option was quickly rejected not because it would have led to Napoleons death, but because it was feared it would have unforeseen repercussions on the stability of the newly reinstalled Bourbon monarchy. Besides, Louis XVIII did not insist on the English handing over Napoleon, so the cabinet decided the best thing was for them to take control of the situation.