XI
The rebellion in Flanders—Death of Joseph II.—Prince Charles in the Russian service—The storming of Ismail—Return to Vienna—Hélène at Kowalowska—The Count’s journey to Paris—The Lignes refuse to grant a divorce—The Count’s illness.
While these romantic events were taking place in Ukrania others of a more serious nature were occurring in Flanders. Van der Noot, uniting his efforts to those of Vonck and Van der Mersch, had issued a manifesto exhorting the people of Brabant to rebellion, and on the same day, the 24th of October 1789, the little army of patriots assembled at Hasselt had invaded the Belgian territory.[90] The Emperor, suddenly alarmed, tried to arrest the movement by making useless concessions; the violent irritation he felt at the defection of Flanders caused him to suspect every one belonging to the country of taking part in the rebellion. The Prince de Ligne himself, then at the siege of Belgrade, did not escape his displeasure, and it was then that he wrote him the harsh letter we have already mentioned. But Joseph soon recognised the injustice of his suspicions, and the Prince de Ligne was recalled. The latter obeyed at once, and wrote the following charming letter to the Emperor:—
Belgrade, November 1789.
“I am overjoyed at your Majesty’s kindness in permitting me to appear before you, and to remain in Vienna until I start for Moravia or Silesia at the head of the army now returning from Syrmia. I am far more touched, Sire, by a grace than by a disgrace. The cares of the siege of Belgrade, and the fever from which I suffered, that no amount of quinine could subdue, prevented my feeling the grief I should naturally have had on reading the terrible phrase: ‘Prepare yourself to receive marks of my displeasure, for it is neither my pleasure nor my habit to be disobeyed.’ I had reason to congratulate myself on my behaviour, Sire, during the Bavarian war eleven years ago, and you thanked me for it. On this occasion, it is true, your Majesty decided that my despatches should be conveyed to you through an orderly; but if I made use of my aides-de-camp, it was solely on account of the Comte de Choiseul’s special message from Constantinople, recommending that his very important despatch to the Marquis de Noailles should be conveyed as safely and directly as possible. An orderly may fall asleep, get drunk, or be murdered.
“I must crave your pardon, Sire, if I showed no anxiety at your displeasure, but I know your justice still better; I supposed that the ill-timed journey made by one of my aides-de-camp to Flanders when the rebellion was at its height had perhaps led your Majesty to suppose that I was concerned in it, and that I had some understanding with the disaffected.”[91]
Whilst the Prince de Ligne was returning to Vienna the insurgents seized Ghent and Brussels, and on the 2d of December 1789 they proclaimed that Joseph II. had forfeited the sovereignty of the Netherlands. Two months later the Emperor succumbed to a chronic disease, aggravated by grief and anxiety.[92] The Prince de Ligne wrote to the Empress Catherine: “He is no more, Madame,—he is no more, the Prince who honoured the man, the man who still more honoured the Prince. He said to me a few days before his death, on my return from the Hungarian army which I had led into Silesia: ‘I was not fit to see you yesterday; your country has killed me.... The capture of Ghent is my agony, and the abandonment of Brussels my death. What an outrage’ (he repeated that word several times). ‘I am dying of it: one would have to be of stone to survive it. I thank you for all you have done for me. Laudon has spoken very well of you; I thank you for your fidelity. Go into Flanders; bring back the country to its allegiance. If you cannot succeed, remain there; do not sacrifice your interests to me—you have children....’”
On the Emperor’s table were found several letters, written on the eve of his death. One of them, which was in French, was addressed to the Princesses François and Charles de Lichtenstein, and to the Comtesses Clary, de Kinsky, and de Kaunitz.
To the Five Ladies who so kindly received Me into their Society.
“The time has come for me to bid you an eternal farewell, and express all the gratitude I feel at the condescension and kindliness you have shown me for so many years. The memory of each day is dear to me, and the thought of separation is the only one that troubles me. Wholly trusting in the goodness of Providence, I submit myself entirely to its decrees. Keep me in remembrance, and do not forget me in your prayers. My writing will show you the condition I am in.”