From Thurgau to the Tuileries

Autor(en): J. J. F. S.

Objekttyp: Article

Zeitschrift: The Swiss observer : the journal of the Federation of Swiss Societies in the UK

Band (Jahr): - (1947)

Heft 1068

PDF erstellt am: 24.09.2021

Persistenter Link: http://doi.org/10.5169/seals-690570

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http://www.e-periodica.ch June 13th, 1947. THE SWISS OBSERVER. 4205

FROM THURGAU TO THE TUILERIES. attempted Strasbourg mutiny of 1836. Under a false name and with 200,000 francs in his possession, he took Among the many foreigners to whom Switzerland, lodgings in Alsace and in the dark hours of an at one time or another extended her traditional right October morning, in the uniform of a French Colonel, of asylum, there was one whom destiny called to play entered the barracks of the 4th Artillery. His purpose, an outstanding role in the history of Europe and who to make himself master of the army, failed : the in the fullness of time came to ascend the throne of garrison, with a few exceptions, refused to mutiny France as the Emperor Napoleon the Third. His and the Prince was arrested and sent to Paris. King strange and dramatic story, in its bare outlines, is here Louis-Philippe granted him a free pardon but with the briefly told. condition that he be deported to America. He was Cliarles-Louis-Napoleon, as he was christened, taken to New York in a French warship but within was born in Paris the 20th April, 1808, the son of less than a year was back in Switzerland, to be at Louis Bonaparte, King of Holland and brother of the bed-side of his dying mother. After her death he Napoleon the First, and of Hortense the younger moved to Gottlieben, another château on the lake of daughter of the Empress Josephine. During his child- Constance and there resumed his activities as the hood he came into frequent contact with his uncle and French pretender. from his early days became imbued with ideas of The French Government, alarmed at his return, Napoleonic grandeur. brought pressure to bear on Switzerland and demanded his the After the fall of Napoleon and on the return of the expulsion, but Swiss resented this interference Bourbons, the members of the with their right of asylum and refused to comply. At remaining Bonaparte this the French family went into exile. Queen Hortense, whose stage, lost patience. Early in 1838 married life was and who had from they mobilized, an army corps was concentrated at unhappy separated and her husband, took her children first to Geneva and Lyons, an ultimatum was expected. Great excite- ment aroused later to Constance where she spent two She was throughout Switzerland and hostili- years. ties have ensued next moved to Bavaria and placed the Prince might were it not that the Prince, young who had become almost Louis in the Gymnasium of Augsburg, where he a national hero, solved the acquired a solid education, and a German accent which problem by withdrawing on his own initiative, to he never quite lost. Most of the boy's England. holidays were He lived in London spent in Switzerland. In 1820, Hortense, with the two years. Society opened its permission of the Swiss settled in the doors to the quiet young Frenchman with the heavy Authorities, moustache and German accent and he made Canton Thurgau. She bought the castle of Arenenberg a many friends. At the house of he met the on the shore of the lake Constance and made it her Lady Blessington permanent home. Here Prince Louis grew to manhood in the peaceful surroundings of the Swiss countryside. He led the uneventful life of a country squire and could often be seen driving his cabriolet along the Constance road, a dark, short figure, his pale face framed in the full beard affected by the dandies of his period. (It was only in later life that he assumed the waxed moustache, and the chin-tuft known as the imperial, by which his features have become familiar). He spent his time riding, swimming and shooting, won prizes at "Schützenfests" and took an active part in cantonal affairs. Though reserved of manner, he became gener- ally popular and there is reason to believe that the Thurgauer folk were rather proud of their dis- tinguished guest. In 1829, the Prince joined a volun- teer-unit of the Swiss artillery and received his Delicious meat juice con- training in the camp of Thun to which he used to go centrated and flavoured. every summer. In due course he was promoted Cap- An ideal meat stock for tain in a Bernese regiment and later received the free- soups. A stimulating hot dorn of Thurgau. To all intents and purposes he had drink, made in a moment. become a Swiss citizen. The great interest he took in Swiss institutions is shown by his book " Considéra- Specially packed in glass tions Politiques et Militaires sur la Suisse." He also airtight containers of 24 wrote a " Manuel d'Artillery," a long and technical cubes (approximately 6 hand-book widely read by military students of his pints). Price 1/3 time. ' In 1832, the Duke of Reichstadt, son of the first One o/ Napoleon, died and Prince Louis became the titular Moggù Prodwc/.y head of the Bonapartes and to the French pretender Made ?'n throne. Shortly before, he had issued his first mani- Png/aiid festo ; from now on he devoted himself completely to the task of restoring the Bonaparte dynasty to what MARBER & CO. (Food Products) Ltd. he believed to be its rightful position. Like his famous lONTENTS 24 CUBfS uncle, he trusted in his star and would shrink from I, Stanhope St., N.W.I no personal risks to achieve his purpose. In this frame StnCtfinD BY MARBER&jj of mind, he undertook his first political venture, the cvs- If 4206 THE SWISS OBSERVER. June 13th, 1947. beautiful Miss Howard who became what a discreet, DOCUMENTS POUR SERVIR A L'HISTOIRE historian has described as his unconsecrated consort. DE NOTRE COLONIE. But social distractions did not deter him from the pursuit of his political intrigues and by 1840 he was On the 29th of this month the Eglise Suisse is ready for his next adventure which was to be a descent celebrating the 185th anniversary of its foundation. on the French coast and a military revolution in one It might interest our readers to learn on this of the northern garrison towns. A paddle-steamer was occasion something of the history of our church, and chartered and on August 6th the Prince, with some we reproduce herewith an introduction and particu- fifty followers, landed near Boulogne. This daring lars, written a few years ago by a former Editor of expedition fared no better than the Strasbourg at- the Swiss Observer," Dr. A. Latt. tempt. Once again, the garrison remained loyal, the conspirators were arrested and the Prince, heavily INTRODUCTION. Dans sa très intéressante brochure guarded, was taken to Paris. This time, no leniency sur l'histoire de l'Eglise Suisse de Londres, Monsieur Roehrich écrit was shown ; he was publicly tried and sentenced to que d'après les plus anciens documents dont a eu imprisonment for life in a, French fortress. He was sent il connaissance des démarches to the château of a citadel on the Somme, where il paraîtrait que infruc- Ham, tueuses avoir suisse à he spent six silent and uncomfortable pour une église Londres furent years. In May faites entre 1720 et 1730. 1846, he escaped, clean-shaven and disguised as a work- déjà " Le Grand Lwre des Actes de HeL;<4 man, made his way to Belgium and re-appeared in Z'Lgdise cité aussi Roehrich, mentionne : London Society. But his exile was to a close ; par que drawing " La tradition était demeurée entre les Suisses the revolution of 1848 which made France a republic établis à Londres depuis longtemps cette entre- once more, gave the Prifice his chance. He returned que prise avait déjà été tentée l'an* 1722 sous le de to Paris and before the year was out, was elected règne S.M. le Roi George qui l'avait approuvée et leur President of the French Republic. Three years later, I, he carried out his dissolved the avait même accordé le terrain pour bâtir une Eglise à coup d'état, parliament la Meuse, de and laid the foundations of the second Empire. His près Charing Cross, mais qu'ils ne dreams had become and s'étaient pas trouvé en assez grand nombre pour youthful true, on 1st Decern- l'éxécuter." ber, 1852, the former captain from Switzer- pouvoir artillery •Te viens de trouver Record Office P. land entered the Tuileries as the Emperor of France. au (S. Swit- zerland Miscellaneous, vol 50) deux mémoires au The rest of the story is well-known : eighteen sujet de cette première tentative de fonder suisse. years of absolute, but on the whole not despotic, rule, une église and Ils sont écrits de la même main sur de grandes feuilles an elegant brilliant court, State visits (Queen de Victoria found the the Crimean papier très bien conservées. Les deux lettres sont Emperor charming) date et adresse. campaign, a futile in the fiasco the sans sans La première porte une war Italy, of de de Mexican episode, and the disastrous of vingtaine signatures membres bien connus de la finally, war colonie suisse, tous les 1870 which brought the Empire crashing down to the presque noms figurant dans les thunder of the Prussian registres de la " Société des Suisses " ou dans la guns. de After surrender at Sedan correspondance Gaspard Wetstein conservée au Napoleon's — that fatal mine name in the annals of France and short British Museum, une inépuissable de renseigne- military — a ments les Suisses in he retired Chislehurst sur à Londres dans la première captivity Wilhelmshoehe, to moitié du ISème siècle. where he died in 1873. His widow, Eugenie, survived Qui est la " Grandeur " à les Suisses him by no less than 47 Meantime, a culminât- laquelle years. s'adressaient avec de révérence et de ing tragedy had overtaken and put an end to the Bona- tant confiance? — D'abord .je en faveur de parte dynasty. The Prince Imperial, Napoleon's conjecturais Lord Carteret only l'ami intime du très influent Luke Schaub son, who held a commission in the British was Sir (un Army, Bâlois était Ambassadeur à de killed in 1879, ambushed by a Zulu qui anglais la cour raiding party Versailles et de during the fighting in South Africa. He and his 1720-24) patron Gaspard Wetstein, le buried in the mausoleum chapelain de la princesse de Galles. — Plus tard des parents are at Farnborough. lettres et To-day, Napoleon the Third and his allusions trouvées dans d'autres collections Empire are m'ont le but a of while in where fait penser que généreux protecteur en ques- page history Switzerland, as tion était le fameux a man he plotted and schemed in the cause of peut-être ministre Lord young Townsliend, alors Secrétaire les Bonapartism, his memory has faded into oblivion. d'Etat pour affaires J.J.F.&. étrangères. Il avait passé quelque temps à Genève et pendant plus de 30 ans il entretenait avec le gouverne- ment de la république ainsi qu'avec LL.EE. (Leurs ROYAL HENLEY REGATTA. Excellences) de Berne une correspondance très amicale, presque familière (voir Royal Letters, Geneva vols. 58 We learn that both the See Club Zurich and the et 59). Finalement je viens de trouver parmi les rap- Ruder Club Zurich will compete in this year's Royal ports du Général Pesme de St. Saphorin (un Vaudois, Henley Regatta which will take place this month. ministre du Roi d'Angleterre auprès de la Cour de Vienne 1715-27) (S.P. Germany et Hungary, vols. 36- 61) un passage très curieux et évidemment écrit à l'appui de la demande de notre colonie. Cette lettre éclaircit deux points restés plus ou moins dôuteux Craffon /?esfaaranf jusqu'à présent : la date de la démarche et le nom de (Swiss Proprietor : G, BONETTI) Lord Townsliend. Il est facile de reconstruire les autres parties de 86, CLEVELAND STREET, W.l. l'affaire. Nous pouvons nous imaginer le zèle de ces pères de notre colonie à s'assurer l'appui des grands :