CHAP. 1791. 76. Designs of the Royal family to effect their escape. The death of Mirabeau did not arrest the plans which he had formed for the escape of the King. His state of thraldom was too obvious to be disguised: coerced at every step by hostile guards, deprived of the liberty of even visiting his own palaces; restrained by the mob, whom even Lafayette could not control; without power, without money, without consideration, it was mere mockery to talk of the throne as forming a constituent part of the government. The experiment of constitutional monarchy had been tried and failed; the president of a republic would have had more real authority: his palace was nothing but a splendid prison. M. de Bouillé was the person on whom the royal family depended in their distress, and Breteuil the counsellor who directed their steps. The noble and intrepid character of the former, and the great reputation he had acquired by the successful suppression of the revolt at Nancy, as well as his position in command of the principal army on the frontier, naturally suggested him as the person to prepare the means of escape. For some time past he had arranged every thing for this purpose; and, under cover of a military movement on the frontier, had drawn together the most 1 Bouillé, faithful of his troops, to a camp at Montmedy. Detachments were placed along the road to protect the journey, 55. Mig. i. under the pretext of securing the safe passage of the military chest, containing a considerable treasure, which was expected from Paris.1 229, 236. Bert. de 132. Th. i. 287. 77. M. de arrange- the journey. M. de Bouille's dispositions to receive and protect the august fugitives had been made with his wonted ability, had been submitted to and approved of by the King, and promised entire success. Forty hussars of Lauzun, under M. Boudet, an approved Royalist, received orders to proceed on the 19th June to St Menehould, and early on the following morning to Pont de Sommeville, on the road to Châlons, and await there the King's coming up from Paris- escort him to St Menehould, and return after depositing the royal family, to Sommeville, and VI. 1791. allow no one to pass the bridge for eighteen hours. The CHAP. Duc de Choiseul and M. de Goguelat, of the état major, who were both known to their majesties, and were in the secret, were to accompany this detachment. M. Dandoins, captain of the royal dragoons, was to be at St Menehould on the 20th, and escort the carriage with his troops to Clermont, where a hundred dragoons of the regiment of Monsieur, and sixty of the royal dragoons, under Count Charles de Damas, were to be on the 19th, and accompany the royal carriage to Varennes, where sixty hussars of Lauzun's regiment were to be stationed. Since the 19th a hundred hussars of the same regiment were at Dun, which lay on their road to the Meuse a very important station, on account of the bridge over that river, and the narrow street which leads to it. At Mouza, a little village between Dun and Stenay, M. de Bouillé stationed fifty horsemen of the regiment Royal Allemand, who could be entirely relied on; while that devoted chief himself was to be with the remainder of the regiment between these two towns, ready to give orders and succour any point which might require it. M. de Goguelat himself was previously instructed to reconnoitre the whole road to Paris, and repair there in 1 Weber, ii. person to inform the King of the whole details of the 78, 79. road and arrangements, which he did to their majesties' 255. entire satisfaction.1 A Bouillé, 78. tions at Paris for the escape family. Every precaution on their side had been taken by the royal family to secure their departure from Paris under Preparafeigned names, and with the most profound secresy. They committed, however, one grievous mistake. military gentleman of known courage had been selected by M. de Bouillé to accompany the royal fugitives in the carriage, and take the general charge of the expedition; but Madame de Tourzel insisted that she should not be separated from the children -no precedent could be found for their travelling without their gouvernante, and she accordingly took the place of the soldier. It was at first VI. 1791. CHAP. proposed that the Princess Elizabeth, the Dauphin, and his sister, should proceed separately to Flanders-and the Queen warmly supported this plan but nothing could bring the King to sever himself from his children, to whom he was tenderly attached. The event proved that the Queen was right. Monsieur, his brother, with Madame, who set out at the same time, arrived safe at Brussels. Passports were obtained for the royal family under feigned names: Madame de Tourzel, the governess of the children, was the Baronne de Korff; the Queen was her gouvernante; the King her valet de chambre; the Princess Elizabeth, a young lady of the party; the Dauphin and the Duchess d'Angoulême, the two daughters of the Baroness, under the names of Amelia and Agläe. Three gardes du corps, under feigned names, were to accompany the carriage; two seated on the outside, one riding as a courier to provide horses. An unlucky accident, arising from the illness of the Dauphin's maid, who was a faithful Royalist, which had occasioned another, who had a leaning to the Revolution, to take her place, caused the departure, after every thing had been arranged for the 19th at midnight, to be delayed until the 20th at the same hour; but M. de Bouillé was warned of the change, and the detach57, 59, 80, ments on the road were kept back accordingly.1 The la Duchesse important duty of driving the carriage which was first to lême, p. 34. convey the royal fugitives from Paris was intrusted to 1 Bouillé, 255, 257. Weber, ii. 84. Relat. de D'Angou the tried fidelity of M. de Fersen,* a gallant Swedish * M. Le Comte de Fersen was a young Swedish nobleman of high rank, elegant figure, and a very romantic character, who, when in France several years before, had been much at Versailles, and admitted to the Queen's private circle at Trianon, for whom he conceived an ardent, but respectful and distant admiration. This feeling, as is generally the case with profound attachments in generous minds, was increased by absence, and wrought up to a devout worship by the misfortunes in which the royal family of France was involved. His skill and address were well known; and when the attempt to escape was resolved on, the Queen, with the instinctive knowledge of women, where they have awakened a real attachment, and on whom in a crisis they may rely, immediately suggested him as the person who was to take charge of their flight from Paris: a perilous commission, which he at once and honourably accepted. See LAMARTINE, Histoire des Girondins, i. 93. nobleman, whom the Queen, from confidence in his fidelity, had suggested for the hazardous charge, and who, on being informed of her choice, instantly repaired from Sweden, where he was at the time, to peril his life in performing the duty assigned to him. CHAP. VI. 1791. Court. 79. Their design, known to few, was betrayed by none; their manner indicated more than usual confidence; and Plans of the at length, on the 20th June, at eleven at night, the June 20. King, with the Dauphin and the Duchess d'Angoulême, the Princess Elizabeth, and Madame de Tourzel, after supping quietly, succeeded in reaching in disguise a carriage on the Quay des Théâtres. The Dauphin was disguised in girl's clothes, and in the highest spirits; he said they were going to play a comedy, as they were in strange dresses. Having got into the carriage, he soon fell fast asleep. The Queen, who set out with a single attendant to avoid suspicion, had nearly betrayed their design. Both being ignorant of the streets of Paris, they lost their way, and accidentally met the carriage of Lafayette, which they only avoided by concealing themselves under the colonnade of the Louvre. At length, after having wandered as far as the Rue du Bac beyond the Pont Royal, they reached the trembling fugitives on the quay, and instantly set out, driven by M. de Fersen, in the carriage provided for them on the road to Montmedy and Châlons. They passed the barrier without being discovered, and reached Bondy in safety, when the chivalrous M. de Fersen, overjoyed at the success, kissed the hands of the King and Queen, and took his departure. They there entered a berline which was ready harnessed by M. de Fersen's care, while the suite got into a cabriolet and proceeded on their journey with post horses, which were ordered along the road by a courier in advance. Nearly an hour was unhappily lost, by an accident to one of the trams of the royal carriage, which required to be repaired at Montmirail between Meaux and Châlons. But still there was no obstruction offered, and the VI. 1791. 1 Relat. du CHAP. Queen, overjoyed at such good fortune, said on entering the latter town, "We are saved." The success of their enterprise appeared certain. But the distance from the capital, and the near approach of the royal corps under Bouillé, occasioned a fatal relaxation in their precautions. The King delayed too long on the road, and had the imprudence to show himself publicly at Châlons, where he was recognised by some persons, who, however, had the humanity to keep the secret. Many even offered up prayers for his success. The expected Voyage à detachment, however, was not found at the bridge of Sommeville, and the carriage proceeded unattended to St Menehould, the next stage, where the postmaster, Drouet, was struck by the resemblance of his countenance to the engraving on the assignat. The ages, the number of the royal family, confirmed him in his suspicions, and after the carriage had departed he sounded the alarm, and despatched one of his friends on a swift horse to Th. i. 289. cross the country, and intercept him at the succeeding post of Varennes.1 Varennes, par la Duchesse D'Angou Campan, ii. Weber, ii. lême, 34. 139, 143. 535 viii. 248, 256. Bouillé, 239, 244. Mig. i. 132. It is painful to reflect on the number of accidents which, by a strange fatality, combined to ruin the enterprise at the very moment when its success seemed certain. The officer in command at St Menehould, who had left Sommeville an hour before the King came up, and returned to his quarters there, observing the motions of Drouet, sounded his trumpets to saddle; but the national guard surrounded the stables, and prevented the dragoons from mounting their horses. An intrepid sergeant, whom he despatched on the footsteps of the emissary, with the design, if he proved what he suspected, of shooting him, though he got sight of Drouet's messenger, lost him again in a wood. The officer commanding the detachment at Clermont no sooner heard of the arrival of the royal carriages than he mounted his horse, and commanded his men to follow; but a rumour of the quality of the fugitives had got abroad, and they refused |