Napoleon in 1812
Chapter 88:

14. End of the SecondHundred Years’ War – 4

“All right. That’sa good enough conditionfor our side.”

“I commendYour Majesty for your wisejudgment.”

Afterpush-and-pull negotiations, aroughframework was established. Britain would be allowed to be an observer, instead of making concessions littlebylittle in the already established convention. It could havelasted longer, but Napoleon declared an end to it here.

“But you’d betterbecareful when you’re setting up abreach. If it extents too much, theagreement betweenour countries could be a tornpieceofpaper. I’m notlying.”

Napoleoncontinued to stick to his attitude that he did notcare whether the warcontinued, which wasthe reason whyBritish diplomatscouldnot keeptheirheadsup.

“…Wewill keep thatinmind, Your Majesty!”

“Phew!…”

Britishdiplomats did notstop fanning despitethe fresh temperatures. They were aware of their precarioussituation. In fact, theFrench sidewas doing the same thing.

Russia, Prussia, Austria, Sweden. Reportsoftheirunusual behavior were coming in every day, and England, whowouldbesecretlyinteractingwith them, could nothave notknown.

It would be a paininthe neckifall fourcountries joined hands andrebelledagainst Franceinunison. Andeven more so at atime when the peninsular war wasnot over. If the UnitedKingdom took advantage of this well, the British would not have to makesuch concessions.

‘Butthe goodthingfor us is thatthe cooperation betweenthe United Kingdom and them is not consistent, andthat there is no decision maker in theBritish delegation here.’

Britain’s diplomaticstaffhad probably received firmorders fromtheirhome country. No matterwhat they had to give in, they had to conclude thenegotiations.

Asthey tried to followtheirguidelines, the accumulation of lossesinthe negotiation processwas inevitable. There was such abig differencewhether thedecisionmakerwas nearby or not.

Andthe result wasNapoleonand the Frenchdiplomats pressing the British envoys forpeace. The British werecurrently onlyinterested in overcoming their own crisis, and they seemed to be refractory about external expeditions and financially supporting other countries.

Throughthis, Napoleonwas abletoguessthat British societywas as sickofwar as France andthat thepowerwithin Westminster had been reversed.

Ifthe leadingpowerhad changed, thenthe new leaders would firmly stick to a lineoppositefrom beforetoprovethat they weredifferent fromtheirpredecessors.

‘Britainwill notbea threattousfor awhile. It was thebest choicetouse Colin.’

Nabot would never haveimaginedthat hishidden slush funds would be usedinthis way. But what could be morejoyous thanhaving eliminatedBritain, the mostannoyingaxis of theanti-Frenchalliance, by exerting its effectiveness tensoftimes?

After learning that the dog, thatstopped barking, hadnointention of biting, Napoleonstruggled to suppress asmileofsatisfaction. Nowthe onlytask left for himwas to pickupthe fruits of hishard work.

“Please formally conveymywishes to the Provisional Government and to Fernando VII: If you don’t want to see theAlcázarPalace of Sevilleturn to ashes, just acceptthe negotiations.”

===

When Britain declared its withdrawal fromthe war, FernandoVII and theSeville Parliament wereterrified and beggedthe Britishambassador.

If you’re out, how canwefightthis war? Do you reallywant us to hand overthe whole IberianPeninsula to those French?

However, there was no waythat an ambassador could do anything about an order issued in hishome country. TheBritish ambassador locked theembassy door and remained silenttoavoidthe difficult situation.

‘Even thoughwefought while changing our country’sfoundation, the front of the peninsular war waspushed to Seville. Our defeatinthis warisa foregone conclusion if Britainleaves us here. We havetomake a decision before it’s too late.’

The atmosphere of the Alcázar Palacewas extremely depressedand someservantseven shed tears. With eachday spent in despair, the short andsternthreat contained in Napoleon Bonaparte’s message was unbearable.

FernandoVII and theSeville Parliament cametothe negotiating table after muchconsideration, and Portugal, whohad beenwatchingfrom theside, joined as well. A tripartite meeting was held withFrance, Spain, Portugaland the UnitedKingdom.

The site of the ceasefirenegotiations on the Iberian Peninsula wasthe capitalofthe pastSpanish Empire, the palaceofMadrid, where tricolor flags were flying as it wasnow occupied by France.

All three countrieswere working on an agreement on theend of the war. Becausethey hadnomore strength or will to fight.

Spainand Portugal, hithard by thelong war, werecompletely devastated, andeven their colonies haddeclaredindependence.

France alsowelcomedthe successofthe talks becausetherewere nota fewpeople who were sickofthe long-running war, and thecost of military supplies that wereconstantly being consumed wasastronomical.

“It’sgoingtobea dinnerasluxurious as the oneheld last yearinDresden.”

Looking at the numerous luxurywagons of different patterns approaching from afar, Michel Neysaid so, not hiding hisadmiration.

Napoleon did notknow thedetails of the‘ConferenceofDresden'[1]because it wasbefore he cametothis world, but he knewthat Nabot gathered keyfigures from French alliesand satellite countriesbefore his trip to Russia andshowed off hisvanity.

Itwas so splendid thatthe people gathered at thePalace of Madrid spoke of thelegendary meetingwith King Friedrich Wilhelm III of Prussia and Francis I ofthe Austrian Empire.

On the Spanish side, MartinodeBorbón, the governor of Andalusia andcousin of Fernando VII, was appointed head of the negotiation team as the king’srepresentative.

He arrived at the palaceofMadrid escorted by Count Enrique, the deputycommander of the Spanish armyand Royal Guard, andwas followed by diplomaticofficials.

Portugal’s Prime Minister José Felix, head of theinterioraffairs of theLisbon government, attended the meeting as the entireroyalfamily was currentlyinBrazil, andPortugal’s commander, Count Amarante, escorted thedelegation.

Jean-BaptisteJourdan, who had foughtbitterlyagainst Count Amarante, was lookingathim withsharpeyes.

On the British side, Viscount Charlton, wholed the armisticeagreement withFrance, participatedasa directobserver.

HispositionofVice Foreign Minister was toohigh to be included in a group of observers, but the importance of the matterovershadowed it.

Inaddition, the prominentofficersofthe Allied forces, who hadrepeatedly tormentedFrance in the Peninsular War, sat together.

The complexnuances in their eyes pleasedthe French generals. Inthe end, the winner of thewar thatwas pushed again andagainwouldremain France. Then, murmurs came frombehind Napoleon.

“Oh! He’s the…”

“Well… his figureisnothing special.”

“He hassome stoutness, too. Wheredoes he come from?”

Napoleonturned his eyes and lookedstraightahead. Brown curly hair, blueeyes, aquilinenose, powerfulchin andcheekbones, and acolorfuluniform embroidered with red, navy blue and khaki.

Napoleon knewwho he was even though he hadneverseen himbefore. Theman noticedNapoleon, madea surprisedexpression andsoon walkedtoward him.

“Areyou the onewho put me andthe Allies into despairand intocrisis overand overagain? I wouldlike to hear fromyou if you arethe one I am supposed to callYour Majesty.”

“I would liketoask you this. Youare the general who sent athirdofthe French troopswho fought on thepeninsula to Valhalla, right?”

Napoleon Bonaparteand Arthur Wellesleycouldnot taketheireyes offeach other. Asthe two were identifying eachother, the numberofaidesand guards surrounding them reachedhundreds.

Such numbersofsoldiers, and thefact that theyused to fight each other justa month ago, naturally created atenseatmosphere.

“I don’t think it’sa very goodplacetotalk to each other about whatwehave in ourhearts. Would youtrustmeand follow me?”

“Why wouldn’t I trustYour Majesty’sintentions? I will tellthe men to wait herefor awhile.”

“But Commander…”

“Don’tforget thatthis is nota battlefield, but asacred place to discussarmistice.”

Arthur Wellesleywas accompanied by onlya fewofthe guards andassistants, and orderedthe restofthem to work in rotation.

Napoleonwas alreadywalking in front of himasifheknew it would be like this. Wellesley followed himwith a hardexpression on hisface.

===

Unlikethe mainpalace, which ranatthe height of splendor, the detached palace of Madridwas aplaceofrest with Rococo’s exquisite delicacy andsimplicity.

The neighborhoodwas bustling withhigh-rank officials anddiplomatic staff from all over the country invitedtothe talks, journalists whocame to cover them and capture the outcome of the negotiations, and Madridcitizenswho cametowatch.

However, thedetachedpalace where Napoleon was staying was under thestrict controlofthe French guards, so he could enjoy its quietness.

“Bourbon Santos, imported fromBrazil. Expensivegoodscost that much, but nowitseemsthat I can’t livewithout this.”

“It’s the finestcoffee our royal familyand gentlemen enjoy. I didn’texpect to see it here.”

Napoleon smiled softlyathis gaze, which had many meanings.

“Everyone knows thatthe fleet of the kingdom is verystrong and that its nets are tight. But the smugglers’ obsession forprofit is moresecretive and sophisticated thanthat.”

ArthurWellesley smiled bitterly. Each country had imposed asevere hostiletradeblockadeonthe other, butthe luxuries needed by theleaders were still there, andwere constantly going backand forth betweenthe two countries. In the end, it was thepeople of bothcountries who suffered from the sharp trade war.

“I wasvery surprisedtohear that the Marquis had joinedthe observers. Asyou know, Britainhas alreadysigned aprioragreement withthe Empire, soits movement is bound to be restrictedatthis meeting. It wasalready shocking that the Vice ForeignMinistercame in person, but I think it is too much for theMarquis to come as well. DoesBritain have any intentionofpressuring thepeople of the Empirewith theprestigeofthe Marquis?”

“I wouldlike to informyou thatI hadnootherchoice becauseHis Highness gavemesuch orders. As YourMajesty said, even if there are hiddenintentions, asa loyal soldier of the kingdom, I havenochoice but to followtheseorders. Buteven if that’sthe case, if YourMajesty theEmperor is nearby, willmyprestigebeofany use?”

“Well, let’ssay it is. Butunfortunately, George IV’sarrangementwill nothave much effect. Because I’mgoingtohold theMarquis like this. Willyou be my companion until themeeting is over?”

“Do youmean it? Itwouldbesuch an honor forme. I didn’t knowthat theEmperor of theFrench Empire would value me so much thatwecouldspendtime on an equal footing.”

By the windowofthe detached palace, next to a terracewith a fountain, thebest commanders of France andEngland satface to face. Secretaries andguards, whowere listeningtotheirconversation froma relatively close distance, swallowedtheirsaliva.

This wasbecause, like thefamous meetingofHannibalBarcaand Scipio Africanus, of the Duke of Marlborough and Karl XII, ofPrince Eugene of Savoy andMarshal de Villars, this was a historic moment that would be rememberedlong after.[2]

“Youdon’thave to be so stiff. You and your kingdomhave signeda treatywith a desire forpeace, and so we will never meetagainonthe battlefield.”

“I am wellawareofthe ruthlessness of international relations. Afterall, theTreaty of Amiens[3]wasonly a temporary peace in theend. Your Majestyremains themost fearedenemyofthe kingdom.”

Napoleonstillsmiled and Wellesleystillhad astiffface. The atmospherehad subsided coldly.

TL notes

[1]ConferenceofDresden

[2]HannibalandScipio Africanus,John Churchill, 1st Duke of MarlboroughandCharles XII of Sweden,PrinceEugene of SavoyandClaudeLouisHector de Villars

[3]Treaty of Amiens

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