After Waterloo: Reminiscences of European Travel 1815-1819

CHAPTER I. May-June, 1815

MAY-JUNE, 1815

Passage from Ceylon to England--Napoleon's return--Ostend--Bruges --Ghent--The King of France at Mass--Alost--Bruxelles--The Duke of Wellington very confident--Feelings of the Belgians--Good conduct of British troops--Monuments in Bruxelles--Theatricals--Genappe and Namur--Complaints against the Prussian troops--Mons--Major-General Adam--Tournay--A French deserter--General Clinton's division--Cavalry review--The Duke de Berri--Back to Bruxelles--Unjust opinions about Napoleon and the French--Battle at Ligny--The day of Waterloo in Bruxelles--Visit to the battlefield--Terrible condition of the wounded--Kindness of the Bruxellois.

CHAPTER II

From Bruxelles to Liége--A priest's declamation against the French Revolution--Maastricht--Aix-la-Chapelle--Imperial relics--Napoleon regretted--Klingmann's "Faust"--A Tyrolese beauty--Cologne--Difficulties about a passport--The Cathedral--King-craft and priest-craft--The Rhine--Bonn and Godesberg--Goethe's "Götz von Berlichingen"--The Seven Mountains--German women--Andernach--Ehrenbreitstein--German hatred against France--Coblentz--Intrigues of the Bourbon princes in Coblentz--Mayence-- Bieberich--Conduct of the Allies towards Napoleon--Frankfort on the Mayn--An anecdote about Lord Stewart and Lafayette--German poetry--The question of Alsace and Lorraine--Return to Bruxelles--Napoleon's surrender.

CHAPTER III

From Bruxelles to Paris--Restoration of Louis XVIII--The officers of the allied armies--The Palais Royal--The Louvre--Protest of the author against the proposed despoiling of the French Museums--Unjust strictures against Napoleon's military policy--The cant about revolutionary robberies--The Grand Opera--Monuments in Paris--The Champs Elysées--Saint-Cloud--The Hôtel des Invalides--The Luxembourg--General Labédoyère--Priests and emigrants--Prussian Plunder--Handsome behaviour of the English officers--Reminiscences of Eton--Versailles.

CHAPTER IV

From Paris to Bruxelles--Visiting the plains of Waterloo--The Duke de Berri at Lille--Beauvais--Return to Paris--Remarks on the French theatre --Talma--Mlle Duchesnois--Mlle Georges--French alexandrine verse--The Abbé Delille--The Opéra Comique.

CHAPTER V

From Paris to Milan through Dijon, Chalon-sur-Saone, Lyons, Geneva and the Simplon--Auxerre--Dijon--Napoleon at Chalon-sur-Saone--The army of the Loire--Mâcon--French grisettes--Lyons--Monuments and theatricals-- Geneva--Character and opinions of the Genevois--Voltaire's chateau at Ferney--The chevalier Zadera--From Geneva to Milan--Crossing the Simplon--Arona--The theatres in Milan--Rossini--Monuments in Milan--Art encouraged by the French--Mr Eustace's bigotry--Return to Switzerland --Clarens and Vevey--Lausanne--Society in Lausanne--Return to Paris--The Louvre stripped--Death of Marshal Ney.

PART II. Chapter Vi

CHAPTER VI

MARCH-JUNE, 1816

Ball at Cambray, attended by the Duke of Wellington--An Adventure between Saint Quentin and Compiègne--Paris revisited--Colonel Wardle and Mrs Wallis--Society in Paris--The Sourds-Muets--The Cemetery of Père La Chaise--Apathy of the French people--The priests--Marriage of the Duke de Berri.

CHAPTER VII

Journey from Paris to Lausanne--Besançon--French refugees in Lausanne --Francois Lamarque--General Espinassy--Bordas--Gautier--Michau--M. de Laharpe--Mlle Michaud--Levade, a Protestant minister--Chambéry--Aix --Details about M. de Boigne's career in India--English Toryism and intolerance--Valley of Maurienne--Passage across Mont Cenis and arrival at Suza--Turin.

CHAPTER VIII

Journey from Turin to Bologna--Asti--Schiller and Alfieri--Italian cuisine--The vetturini--Marengo--Piacenza--The Trebbia--Parma--The Empress Maria Louisa--Modena--Bologna--The University--The Marescalchi Gallery--Character of the Bolognese.

CHAPTER IX. Journey Across the Appennines to Florence--Tuscan Idioms and

Journey across the Appennines to Florence--Tuscan idioms and customs--Monuments and galleries at Florence--The Cascino--Churches-- Theatres--Popularity of the Grand Duke--Napoleon's downfall not regretted--Academies in Florence.

CHAPTER X

Journey from Florence to Rome--Sienna--Radicofani--Bolsena--Montefiascone wine--Viterbo--Baccano--The Roman Campagna--The papal douans--Monuments and Museums in Rome--Intolerance of the Catholic Christians--The Tiber and the bridges--Character of the Romans--The Palazzi and Ville--Canova's atelier--Theatricals--An execution in Rome.

CHAPTER XI

From Rome to Naples--Albano--Velletri--The Marshes--Terracina--Mola di Gaeta--Capua--The streets of Naples--Monuments and Museums--Visit to Pompeii and ascent to Vesuvius--Dangerous ventures--Puzzuoli and Baiae--Theatres at Naples--Pulcinello--Return to Rome--Tivoli.

CHAPTER XII. November-December, 1816

NOVEMBER-DECEMBER, 1816

From Rome to Florence--Sismondi the historian--Reminiscences of India--Lucca--Princess Elisa Baciqochi--Pisa--The Campo Santo--Leghorn-- Hebrews in Leghorn--Lord Dillon--The story of a lost glove--From Florence to Lausanne by Milan, Turin and across Mont Cenis--Lombardy in winter--The Hospice of Mont Cenis.

PART III. Chapter Xiii

CHAPTER XIII

MARCH-SEPTEMBER, 1817

Journey from Lausanne to Clermont-Ferrand--A wretched conveyance--The first dish of frogs--Society in Clermont-Ferrand--General de Vergennes-- Cleansing the town--Return to Lausanne--A zealous priest--Journey to Bern and back to Lausanne--Avenches--Lake Morat--Lake Neufchatel--The Diet in Bern--Character of the Bernois--A beautiful Milanese lady.

CHAPTER XIV. September, 1817-April, 1818

SEPTEMBER, 1817-APRIL, 1818

Journey from Lausanne to Milan, Florence, Rome and Naples--Residence at Naples--The theatre of San Carlo--Rossini's operas--Gaming in Naples--The Lazzaroni--Public writers--Carbonarism--Return to Rome--Christmas eve at Santa Maria Maggiore--Mme Dionigi--Theatricals--Society in Rome--The papal government--Lucien Bonaparte, prince of Canino--Louis Napoleon, ex-King of Holland--Pope Pius VII--Thorwaldsen--Granet--The Holy Week in Rome--The Duchess of Devonshire--From Rome to Florence by the Perugia road.

CHAPTER XV. April-July, 1818

APRIL-JULY, 1818

Journey from Florence to Pisa and from thence by the Appennines to Genoa--Massa--Carrara--Genoa--Monuments and works of art--The Genoese--Return to Florence--Journey from Florence through Bologna and Ferrara to Venice--Monument to Ariosto in Ferrara--A description of Venice--Padua--Vicenza--Verona--Cremona--Return to Milan--The Scala theatre--Verona again--From Verona to Innspruck.

CHAPTER XVI. July-September, 1818

JULY-SEPTEMBER, 1818

Innspruck--Tyrol and the Tyrolese--From Innspruck to Munich--Monuments and churches--Theatricals--Journey from Munich to Vienna on a floss--Trouble with a passport--Complicated system of Austrian money--Description of Vienna--The Prater--The theatres--Schiller's Joan of Arc--A Kinderballet--The young Napoleon at Schoenbrunn--Journey from Vienna to Prague.

CHAPTER XVII. September, 1818-March, 1819

SEPTEMBER, 1818-MARCH, 1819

The splendid city of Prague--The German expression, "To give the basket"-- Journey from Prague to Dresden--Journey from Dresden to Berlin--A description of Berlin--The Prussian Army--Theatricals--Peasants talk about Napoleon--Prussians and French should be allies--Absurd policy of the English Tories--Journey from Berlin to Dresden--A description of Dresden--The battle of Dresden in 1813--Clubs at Dresden--Theatricals-- German beds--Saxon scholars--The picture gallery--Tobacco an ally of Legitimacy--Saxon women--Meissen--Unjust policy of Europe towards the King of Saxony.

CHAPTER XVIII. March-April, 1819

MARCH-APRIL, 1819

Journey from Dresden to Leipzig--The University of Leipzig--Liberal spirit--The English disliked in Saxony--The English Government hostile to liberty--Journey to Frankfort--From Frankfort to Metz and Paris--A.F. Lemaître--Bon voyage to the Allies--Return to England.

* * * * *

CHAPTER I. May-June, 1815

MAY-JUNE, 1815

Passage from Ceylon to England--Napoleon's return--Ostend--Bruges--Ghent-- The King of France at Mass--Alost--Bruxelles--The Duke of Wellington very confident--Feelings of the Belgians--Good conduct of British troops--Monuments in Bruxelles--Theatricals--Genappe and Namur--Complaints against the Prussian troops--Mons--Major-General Adam--Tournay--A French deserter--General Clinton's division--Cavalry review--The Duke de Berri--Back to Bruxelles--Unjust opinions about Napoleon and the French--Battle at Ligny--The day of Waterloo in Bruxelles--Visit to the battlefield--Terrible condition of the wounded--Kindness of the Bruxellois.

BRUXELLES, May 1, 1815.

I proceed to the fulfilment of my promise, to give you from time to time the details of my tour, and my reflections on the circumstances that occur at this momentous crisis.

To me, who have spent the greatest part of my life out of Europe, the whole scene is so new that I am quite bewildered with it; and you will, I am afraid, as I write on the impulse of the moment, find my ideas at times rather incoherently put together. What changes have taken place in Europe within the last two years! and how great were those which occurred during the interval of my passage from Ceylon last year, which island I quitted about the time that we received in that part of the world intelligence of the battle of Leipsic! Having had a long passage from distant Taprobane, it was only on my arrival at the Cape of Good Hope, that I learned, to my utter astonishment, the news of the capitulation of Paris to the allied powers, and of the overthrow of the power and dynasty of Napoleon. I recollect that at the Cape there was great rejoicing and jubilee on this occasion; but I confess, as to myself, I did not see any reason for giving vent to this extravagant joy; and I must have had even at that time somehow or other a presentiment of what would soon happen, as in communicating this intelligence to a friend in India I made use of these words: "get a court dress made, my good friend, and a big wig, ruffled shirt, and hair-powder, and stick an old-fashioned sword by your side, for, depend on it, old fashions will come into play again; the most arbitrary and aristocratic notions will be revived and terrible machinations will be framed against the liberties of Europe."

Of course at the Cape we only heard one side of the question; and I began to be almost convinced that it was as necessary for humanity, as for the repose of Europe, that the giant should be put down; and I was consoled when it was effected, ostensibly, at least, by the voice of the people.

I had scarcely been three months in England, when the return of Napoleon from Elba, and the extraordinary dislocation of the Bourbons from the throne of France, summoned Europe again to arms; the crusade is preached at Vienna, and behold! his Grace of Wellington appointed the Godfrey of the holy league. I had reason, about six weeks before the news of this event reached London, from some conversation I had with an intelligent friend, who had just returned from a tour on the Continent, to suppose that the slightest combination against the Bourbons would prove successful, from their injudicious conduct and from the temper of the people; but I never could have supposed that the return of the man of Elba would be hailed with such unparalleled and unanimous acclamation. As I had long ago wished for an opportunity of visiting the continent of Europe, which had never before occurred to me, I eagerly embraced the offer made to me by my friend Major-General Wilson, formerly Lieut.-Governor of Ceylon, to accompany him on a military tour through the country about to be the theatre of war. Though I had never before visited the Continent (except with the British army in the invasion of Holland in 1799, when I began my military career), yet I was not wholly unprepared for travelling, having united to a classical, as well as military education, a tolerable knowledge of history, and a partial acquirement of the principal modern European languages, which I had begun to learn when very young and which I kept up during my leisure hours in India, which, like those of Don Quixote, were many. I preferred this study infinitely to that of the Asiatic languages, for which I never felt any taste, as I dislike bombast, hyperbole and exaggeration; and though an ardent admirer of the Muses, I never could find pleasure in what Voltaire terms "le bon style oriental, ou l'on fait danser les montagnes et les collines," and I prefer the amatory effusions of Ovid to those of the great King Solomon himself.

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