XXV. 1830. of so serious a kind took place in the Faubourg St CHAP. 1 Ann. Hist. xiii. 429, 430; Cap. iii. 392, Blanc, ii. ment of the At length, on the 15th of December, the trial com- 6. menced in the hall of the Peers, in the palace of the CommenceLuxembourg. Everything had been done which could trial. give dignity and solemnity to the august spectacle. Seats were provided for all the foreign ambassadors and their families, as well as the principal dignitaries of the king Dec. 15. 1 XXV. 1830. CHAP. dom; and a guard of two thousand men, with several guns, was provided for daily service around the hall, besides powerful reserves in all the barracks of the capital, ready to turn out at a moment's notice. No less than one hundred and sixty-three of the Peers answered to their names when the roll was called; twenty sent excuses, which were sustained. The proceedings opened with the utmost solemnity, and were marked by a degree of moderation and equity which reflected honour on the august assembly, and contrasted strangely with the perpetual cry of "La mort, la mort! la mort aux Ministres!" which burst from the agitated crowds that surrounded the palace. The defence of Ministers rested mainly on the necessity of their situation, as the Government had been brought to a dead lock by the majority of 221 in the Chamber of Deputies, and on the 14th article of the charter, which, for such extreme cases, had, it was contended, provided the appropriate remedy. All the accused behaved with firmness, and yet temperance of demeanour. The smile often appeared on Prince Polignac's lips which had so frequently been seen during the whole course of these stormy scenes. Being asked who drew up the report which preceded the issuing of the ordinances, M. de Chantelauze replied, "It was I; it was drawn up after the principles of the ordinances had been agreed on by the Cabinet; it was a manifesto intended to be published, demanded by the King, and approved by the Council." The courage of this answer, when a capital charge was hanging over the accused, and vociferous crowds on the outside demanded their death, excited a general and involuntary feeling of respect.1 1 Louis Blanc, ii. 397, 461; Cap. iii. 489, 492; Ann. Hist. xiii. 431, 440. 7. of the Ad Louis Philippe, greatly to his honour, had from the Dissolution very first exerted himself to the very utmost to save the ministra- lives of the accused. More than this could not, in the excited state of the public mind, by possibility be hoped for. His conduct in this respect was the more praiseworthy, that it was attended with imminent hazard to his own crown, tion. XXV. 1830. and even life; for such was the excitement in Paris on the CHAP. subject of the trial, that it was hard to say whether the Sovereign or the prisoners stood in the greater peril. As it was, the crisis proved fatal, not to the monarchy, but to the administration. The immediate and ostensible occasion of its fall was a split in the Cabinet, on the subject of dismissing M. Odillon Barrot, the Prefect of the Seine, from his office, on occasion of a proclamation he had issued, condemning the address of the Chamber of Deputies, which had appeared in the official part of the Moniteur, as "an inopportune step, calculated to inter- Nov. 9. rupt the ordinary course of justice." This gave rise to a violent altercation in the Cabinet between the King and M. Dupont de l'Eure, who was supported by M. de Lafayette and the whole strength of the republican party; the former contending for the dismissal, the latter resisting it. It was easy to see, from the warmth with which the dispute was conducted on both sides, that a more vital interest than a mere question of criminal law was at stake, and that the real point was, whether or not the lives of the state prisoners were to be saved.* The Keeper of the Seals, M. Dupont de l'Eure, tendered his resignation if M. Odillon Barrot was dismissed. The King, alarmed at the prospect of an entire breach with the republican party, 365; Louis consented to retain him; and the consequence was, that 151, 153; Cap. iii. MM. de Broglie, Guizot, Molé, Casimir Périer, Dupin, and 343, 345. Bignon, tendered their resignations, which were accepted.1 1 Ann. Hist. xiii. 363, 'Blanc, ii. * "Louis Philippe annonce que la retraite du Préfet de la Seine est décidée, et que M. de Lafayette y consent. 'M. de Lafayette, Sire!' dit alors M. Dupont de l'Eure, votre Majesté se trompe assurément.' 'Je l'ai entendu, Monsieur.' Permettez-moi de croire à une erreur de votre part: M. de Lafayette m'a tenu un langage différent, et je ne crois pas le Général capable de le contredire à ce point.' Le visage du roi était en feu. 'Au reste,' continue le Garde des Sceaux (Dupont), 'reparlons de ce qui me concerne. Puisque M. Odillon de Barrot se retire, je réitère à votre Majesté la prière d'accepter ma démission.' Mais, vous m'avez dit ce matin tout le contraire.' 'Moi, Sire! J'affirme cette fois que vous êtes dans l'erreur.' 'Quoi, Monsieur! cous me donnez un démenti? Tout le monde saura que vous m'avez manqué.' 'Sire !' répondit M. Dupont avec dignité, 'quand le roi aura dit oui, et M. Dupont, non, je ne sais auquel des deux la France croira."-LOUIS BLANC, vol. ii. p. 152. VOL. IV. 2 K CHAP. 1830. 8. of M. La fitte's ministry. Oct. 29. To all appearance the triumph of the Republicans was now complete, for they had succeeded in humbling the King, and driving the Doctrinaires and Conservatives of Formation the Cabinet out of office, on a question in which they themselves were clearly in the wrong,-viz. in supporting a subordinate functionary, still holding office, in a public act of insubordination against the Government. But with that dexterity which the King possessed in so remarkable a degree, and of which, in the course of his reign, he gave so many proofs, he contrived to elude the blow, and escape total defeat, by making a new combination, and taking his Cabinet, not from the victorious Republicans, but from the burgher party, which had not yet been brought into discredit. The Duke de Broglie retired from the dignified post of President of the Council; M. Guizot from the scarcely less important position of Minister of the Interior: M. Lafitte was made President of the Council and Minister of Finance; Marshal Maison, Minister of Foreign Affairs; M. Montalivet, Minister of the Interior; M. Merilhou, Minister of Public Instruction; while M. Dupont de l'Eure, Count Sébastiani, and Marshal Gérard retained their offices respectively of Ministers of Justice, the Marine, and War. These seven alone constituted the Cabinet, from which M. Dupin and M. Bignon were excluded. The defeat of the Doctrinaires was complete, for they were entirely extruded from the Government; and the step in favour of the democratic party was considerable, for a banker, the author of the Revolution of July, was Premier, and the aristocratic party were almost Nov. 17. entirely excluded from the Cabinet. A few days after, an ordinance appeared, appointing Count Sébastiani Minister 1 Ann. Hist. of Foreign Affairs, Count Argout Minister of the Marine, 369; Louis and Marshal Soult Minister at War, in room of Marshal Gérard.1 The triumph of the extreme democrats, however, was not complete, for the burgher party, of which Lafitte was the head, still formed the majority of the Council; and xiii. 366, Blanc, ii. 136, 140; Cap. iii. 136, 141. XXV. it turned out, ere long, that Marshal Soult, the new War CHAP. Minister, was the most formidable antagonist which the Republicans had ever encountered, and very different from Prince Polignac or the priests who had induced the Revolution of July. 1830. 9. statement of ples of his The contest of parties began in the Chamber the very first day that the new Ministers appeared in their places M. Lafitte's there. M. Lafitte on this occasion made the follow- the princiing statement of the principles on which his Ministry ministry. was to be conducted: "A member of the former and Nov. 10. present Administration, it falls to me to explain our intentions and proposed line of conduct, and the explanation shall be as concise as possible. The whole Council were unanimously of opinion that liberty could only be accompanied with order, and that the inflexible execution of the laws, till they are changed by legislative authority, is indispensable, under pain of anarchy. All are full of the hopes which the Revolution of 1789 has bequeathed to the world. Every one knows that the Revolution of 1830 must be restrained within certain bounds, that it is necessary to conciliate Europe by uniting to dignity a measured moderation. Upon these points we were all agreed, because the Cabinet was composed only of men of sense and prudence. But a difference arose upon the way in which we were to carry out the Revolution of 1830. The opinion was not general that it was destined. soon to degenerate into anarchy; that it was necessary early to take measures of precaution against it; to evince distrust and hostility towards it. But, excepting upon this one point, there was no difference of opinion among the members of the late Cabinet." This declaration was perfectly sincere, and very near the truth; but it excited very little attention, as being couched only in vague genera-1 Moniteur, lities, which meant nothing. One only point of real 1830; Louis practical importance occupied every mind, and divided 141, 142. society with the utmost acrimony.1 The Legitimists and Nov. 11, Blanc, ii. |