John Quincy Adams Digital Diary

29. VI:30. The day was remarkably fine— The trees are putting fully forth their leaves— At Noon I went to the Hotel des Relations Exterieures, and had an interview of half an hour with Mr: de Caulaincourt, Duc de Vicence— He apologized to me for my having been delayed, and said he should have called upon me, if he had known I was in Paris. I told him that although sensible he could at the present juncture have no time to spare, I could not resist the temptation of requesting to see him; to offer him my congratulations on the change which had just taken place, with which I had been gratified in general, and more especially as it related personally to him. He said that a Revolution had been rendered unavoidable by the misconduct of the Bourbons— That with the exception of a handful of emigrants who had been twenty years carrying on a War against their Country, the dissatisfaction had been universal. If the Emperor had not returned there would have been in less than six Months an insurrection of the People, the operation of which would have been dreadful— That by the Emperor’s return it had been effected without a drop of blood shed. His Government was now established throughout France more completely and effectually than it was eighteen Months ago— He, the Duke had last Evening enquired of Fouché (the new Minister of the Police) who received Reports from every part of the Country— He had assured him that there was not one Report made to him from any quarter, of any act of violence or resistance— The return to the present order of things accomplished itself every where; without an effort— It was inconceivable— Nothing like it was to be found in history— But so it was— The Government had not adopted the bad habit which the late Government had fallen into, of disguising or concealing to true state of things, but there was nothing to conceal— France would have a strong Government, and Institutions upon liberal 239principles.— The Emperor had renounced all ideas of an extended Empire— His earnest wish was Peace with all the world. He would execute with the utmost fidelity the Treaty of Paris— The late Government had contracted engagements by which France was bound, and which the Emperor considered as sacred for him— I said that I was very happy to hear this assurance from him— That the speculative opinions of the public on this subject were various— I myself had expected, first that he, the Duke would fill the place where I was now happy to see him, and secondly, that the Emperor’s policy would be precisely such as he now announced it to me— I had believed this would be his course, because it appeared to me the course obviously the best suited to his interest—the wisest course, and that in which he would be the strongest— It remained only to hope that he would meet with the return of the same pacific Spirit, in the other European Powers— I asked him if he had any thing new from abroad— He said he had just received the English Newspapers of the 25th. which were now in the process of being translated. He did not know what they contained— As to Vienna, he did not think it would be possible within eight or ten days to ascertain what would definitively be done by the sovereigns there— As to any thing done before the information could reach there of the Emperor’s entry at Paris, he considered all that as the result of Passion— They would not act upon these vague and unsettled impressions; the time for reflection would come; and he still hoped the Peace would not be violated— If however it should, the War on the part of France would be national, and the Emperor would be stronger than he had ever been. Stronger in the attachment of his troops, and stronger in the Spirit of the People— The Emperor’s wish was Peace; and he the Duke could assure me that if it had been otherwise, he would not have been his Minister— He had no doubt that Talleyrand would do every thing in his power, pour tout embrouiller, et pour pousser à la guerre, but he hoped it would be without success— I mentioned to him that while I had been at Ghent, De Cabre had passed through that place; and had spoken to me of him in terms of the highest respect— That in coming to Paris I had long balanced in my own mind, whether I would not take the road by Compiegne; for the sake of calling to see him at his Estate, and had concluded at last to go through Peronne, from an uncertainty whether circumstances might not exist, which would have made my visit inconvenient to him— He said that it would have been only two or three leagues from my road, and he should have seen me with great pleasure— That the Emperor had appointed him at a most distressing and disastrous period his Minister of foreign relations.— The allied Sovereigns had been pleased to speak of him to his brother in Law at Francfort in terms of Confidence and he thought it impossible at that time, and under such Circumstances to refuse the appointment— He had of course been engaged in the Negotiations which issued so unfortunately, and the Bourbons had thought proper to send him into exile— He had heard there of the Peace we had made; and that it was a bonne paix— Was his information correct?— I said it was on the basis of the Statu quo ante Bellum. Every thing was left as it had been; and it might be called a good Peace, taking into consideration the situation in which the Revolution in Europe had left us— We had to contend against the whole power of Great-Britain—without a friend in Europe— With almost all Europe inclining even against us; and with the Government of France in the leading strings of our Enemy— Shewing us every possible ill-will; and as we had reason to believe, restrained only by the general and strongly pronounced Sentiment of the Nation in our favour, from declaring against us— He said they would undoubtedly have declared against us, if they had dared, and nothing but the national Sentiment had restrained them—the Duke of Wellington had been substantially the Sovereign of France— The Bourbons had been mere puppets in his hands; and he had dated his despatches here at Paris, at the head-quarters of his army.— The subserviency of the Bourbon Government to him had been unbounded— France had been degraded in her own eyes and in those of the world, below the rank of an Independent Nation— But henceforth said he we shall neither be English, nor Austrians, nor Russians—nous serons nous. We shall not attempt to give the law to any other Nation, but we shall be our own Masters at home— But, said he, the Emperor of Russia, did manifest here at Paris, some interest in your favour— I said that the Emperor of Russia had uniformly manifested an interest in our favour. His disposition had been always friendly to us— He had in the first instance offered his mediation, and had constantly testified his good will— But he had done nothing for us. He had left us to fight our own battles, and we had never asked any thing of him— The Duke said that the attention of the Emperor of Russia had been so entirely absorbed by the great object of the affairs of Europe, that he had probably found it impossible to do any thing for those of America— I then observed that I hoped the relations between France and my own Country would soon be restored to a friendly and mutually advantageous footing. That I was here waiting for the orders of my Government, and expected to receive in the course of a few days my recall from the mission to Russia, either with permission to return to the United States, or perhaps an order to go to England. that in either case I should probably want a Passport from him, and should then apply to him for it— He said he was entirely at my disposal; and he begged me when I should see Mr Crawford to say the same thing for him to that Gentleman— All the other foreign Ministers, he said, were gone— They had all asked for Passports, which had accordingly been furnished to them.— I observed that I believed Mr Crawford had been for some time determined to return to the United States, and had already received permission to that effect from our Government. He had mentioned to me that he should probably go in a few weeks. The Duke said that under the peculiar circumstances of the times 240perhaps it would be better for Mr Crawford to wait for further orders from his Government, founded on their knowledge of the present Events— I said I should mention to Mr Crawford the substance of this conversation; and then took leave— I walked home after taking several turns in the garden of the Tuileries— There was a crowd of people under the windows of the Emperor’s Apartment; where he was walking with one of his officers, and occasionally appeared at the window which was open.— I saw him, but not distinctly enough to recognize his features— In the Evening we went all to the Theatre de la Porte St: Martin— Saw Vernon de Kergalek, a very wretched farce; Les six Ingénus a tolerable Ballet, and Le Vieux de la Montagne a tiresome Melodrame at which Charles was much frightened.