XXV. 1831. 1 Hist. of Europe, c. ix. § 121. CHAP. which might arise. England had been drawn into the first revolutionary war by the advance of Dumourier to Antwerp, and the opening of the mouth of the Scheldt, contrary to existing treaties,' and its independence might be not less seriously menaced by the incorporation of Flanders with France, in conformity with the loudly expressed wish of the revolutionists in both countries, or the bestowing of the crown of Belgium on a son of the King of the French.2 3 Cap. iv. 244, 245; Ann. Hist. xiv. 378, 380. 21. Belgium Feb. 3, 1831. Notwithstanding the obvious force of these consideraCrown of tions, which threatened to involve Europe in a general war, if either the incorporation of Belgium with France were openly attempted, or if it was indirectly brought under French influence by its crown being bestowed on a son of the King of the French, such was the weight of the French party, and the desire of the leading party in the revolution for a connection with that country, that the Estates made a formal tender of the crown to the Duke de Nemours. Louis Philippe was much embarrassed by this election, however agreeable, under other circumstances, it might have been to his ambition. He had already formally announced to the Estates of Belgium "that he would never, in any event, recognise the Duke de Leuchtenberg or the Duke de Nemours as King of Belgium, or give the former, if elected, any of his daughters in marriage ;" and now he was tempted by a direct offer of the crown to his son.* His own throne, however, was not Ann. Hist. sufficiently established to permit him to take a step which would probably give umbrage to all the European powers, and would certainly dissolve the good understand Jan. 11. 3 Cap. iv. 255, 257; xiv. 394, 396. 3 "Le roi ne consentira pas à la réunion de la Belgique à la France; il n'acceptera pas la couronne pour M. le Duc de Nemours, alors même qu'elle lui serait offerte par le Congrès. Le gouvernement verrait, dans le choix du Duc de Leuchtenberg, une combinaison de nature à troubler la tranquillité de la France. Nous n'avons pas le projet de porter la plus légère atteinte à la liberté des Belges dans l'élection de leur souverain, mais nous usons aussi de notre droit en déclarant de la manière la plus formelle que nous ne reconnaîtrons pas le Duc de Leuchtenberg."-Dépêche de Sébastiani, 11th January 1831. Ann. Hist., vol. xiv. pp. 385, 386. XXV. 1831. ing between France and England. He had the good · CHAP. sense, accordingly, to refuse the tempting offer, in terms courteous, indeed, but sufficiently firm to show that his mind was made up; and the crown of Belgium continued to be vacant, the object of diplomatic intrigue and revolutionary ambition. 22. Jan. 20, Holland gium. By another protocol of the representatives of the five powers at London, on 20th January 1831, it was pro- Protocol, vided that the kingdom of Holland should embrace all 1831, fixing the territories which formed part of the Seven United limits of Provinces in 1789; and that of Belgium, "the whole re- and Belmainder of the territories which had received the denomination of the Kingdom of the Low Countries in the treaty of 1815, with the exception of the Grand-duchy of Luxembourg, which the princes of the House of Nassau possessed by a different title, and which formed, and shall continue, part of the German Confederation. All the dispositions of the general act of the Congress of Vienna relative to the free navigation of rivers and navigable streams shall apply to the rivers and streams which traverse the Dutch or Belgian territory." Provision was also made for the mutual exchange of small detached portions of the Belgian and Dutch territory which lay enclavés in each other's territories, in order that the dominions of each should be rounded, and embrace none 1 Protocol, lying within the general limits of the other. This pro- 1831; Ann. tocol was of great consequence, as fixing the respective Hist. xiv. limits of the Dutch and Belgian states, which have ever Hist. since remained separated in the European family.' Jan. 20, 125; Doc. 23. London and Louis The refusal of Louis Philippe to accept the throne of Belgium for his son gave the highest satisfaction in Lon- Views in don, both as adjourning at least, if not avoiding, the Paris on dangers of the extension of French power and influence. Philippe's to the mouth of the Scheldt, and as demonstrating that refusal. the sway of Great Britain in European diplomacy was superior to that of France. It gave nearly as much satisfaction to the Republicans at Paris; for what they XXV. 1831. CHAP. desired was, not to see a valuable appanage bestowed upon the Orléans family, already become the object of their irreconcilable hatred, but to effect an incorporation of Belgium and France in one great republic, extending to the Rhine, and recalling the glories, as it embraced the territories, of Napoleon. Meanwhile the government of Holland, recovered from the shock occasioned by the severance of Belgium, was taking the most active measures to put itself in a posture of defence. Troops were rapidly levied to increase the strength of the regular army; the patriotic spirit of the people added greatly to their number by voluntary enlistment; the frontier towns were armed, provisioned, and put in a respectable posture of defence. Already the regular army amounted to 60,000 men, which before the summer was increased to 80,000; and the spirit of the people, deeply excited by xiv. 400, 1 Ann. Hist. the treachery and defection of the Belgians, supported 401; Cap. the Chambers in all the money grants requisite to support an establishment so great for a state not numbering above two millions and a-half of inhabitants.1 iv. 246, 248. 24. distracted state of Belgium. In Belgium, on the other hand, the usual weakness Weak and which succeeds the first burst of revolutionary strength was daily becoming more conspicuous. The country was not only without a government, but no one could foretell either what the government was to be, or into whose hands it was to fall. The diplomatic body nearly unanimously supported Prince Otho, second son of the King of Bavaria, as the candidate least likely to excite the jealousy of France or England. The Duke of Leuchtenberg was out of the question, as the French government had formally declared they would never consent to his appointment. In these circumstances, a considerable party in the Belgian Assembly began to turn their eyes to Prince LEOPOLD OF SAXE-COBOURG, whose German connections might, it was hoped, conciliate the powers of that country; while his connection with Great Britain, through the late Princess Charlotte, would probably render Nor did it CHAP. XXV. 1831. him acceptable to the cabinet of St James's. escape the notice of the Belgian patriots, that he was possessed of a jointure of £50,000 a-year as widower of the daughter of England, which might be of essential service in consolidating their infant monarchy; while by offering his hand to a daughter of France, he might conciliate the suffrages of that country, and overcome the scruples of its cautious sovereign. But these views were problematical only, and wrapped in the darkness of futurity. In the mean time, the country was without a government, and fast falling into the anarchy and helplessness which invariably succeed such an interregnum. The taxes were unpaid, the fortresses unarmed, the exchequer empty; already nearly half of the army, ashamed of their defection, had left their colours; and though the Assembly at Brussels passed repeated decrees ordering the levying of fresh troops, and calling out the ban and arrière-ban, yet no progress was made in embodying Ann. Hist. them; and while the external dangers of the country 403; Cap. were hourly increasing, its internal means of defence 259. were daily wasting away.1 1 xiv. 401, iv. 247, 25. state of The dangers of a general war, great as they were in the north of Europe from the difficulties which beset the Perilous Belgian question, were, in a great measure, removed by Italy. the temper and judgment displayed by the diplomatists at London, especially Prince Talleyrand and Lord Palmerston, and the sincere desire which they all felt to avoid anything which might induce hostilities. But it was otherwise in Italy, where the ardent spirit of revolution, nourished by French propagandism, and excited by French convulsions, was brought in contact with the cautious spirit of Austrian conservatism, directed by the prudent sagacity of Prince Metternich. In Milan, the seeds of revolt were ripe, and no slight fermentation was evinced on occasion of the revolutions of July and October; but the presence of a large Austrian force, the vigilance of the police, and the energetic measures of Mar VOL. IV. 2 L XXV. 1831. CHAP. shal Radetsky, the governor, prevented any actual outbreak. It was otherwise, however, in the Papal States, where the government was weaker, the seditious spirit stronger, and the prospect of success to the revolutionists greater. A formidable insurrection accordingly was soon organised in the Pope's dominions, which had its principal ramifications in the Papal Legation, or provinces to the north of the Apennines, and its centre in Bologna, a city where an independent free spirit had long been in an especial manner conspicuous. The wealth of this city was great, its inhabitants amounted to sixty thousand, and its citizens were animated with that desire for a share in the government which naturally arose from a consciousness of their own strength, and a perception of the imbecility of the conclave of Cardinals by whom they were oppressed. In Modena also, and Parma, the same discontent prevailed, iv. 263, 264. and the people only waited for an opportunity to shake off their oppressive petty tyrants.1 1 Ann. Hist. xiv. 532, 535; Cap. 26. Insurrec tions in Bologna, The insurrection broke out first in Modena, on the 3d of February, and was in the outset suppressed, and its leader Menotti made prisoner. But next day appearances of disturbance of a much more serious kind showed themselves in Bologna. Its garrison, which consisted of only seven hundred men, was ordered by the Prolegat, governor of the town, not to act, for fear of irritating the people. The consequences of this timidity were soon apparent. Assured of impunity whatever they did, the conspirators sallied forth from their respective places of rendezvous, and were soon strengthened by the whole students of its far-famed university. Thus supported, they advanced to the palace of the Prolegat, whom they forced to abdicate, and retire with the garrison over the Apennines to Florence. A provisional government was immediately established, comprising, among others, some dignitaries of the old Kingdom of Italy; the authority of the Pope as a temporal sovereign was overturned; the Italian tricolor, green, white, and blue, everywhere mounted, and the people invited to form |