Lord Granville, as his letters show, was at first by no means anxious to mediate, but altered his mind, because he was under the impression that the change of government in Paris had made the Prussians more anxious to treat. The French were not to be informed of this altered attitude on the part of their adversary but were to be encouraged to put forward 'elastic' proposals, Bismarck having graciously intimated that he had no objection to England becoming the channel of communication. The objections to mediation were sufficiently obvious. If the basis of a cession of territory were to be adopted, then it would be clearly undesirable for any neutral country to attempt to exercise any pressure upon France, and there would not be anything to be gained by such action, for France could always obtain peace on these terms from Prussia without foreign aid. If, on the other hand, mediation was adopted on the basis of the integrity of French territory, there appeared to be little or no chance of success.
In spite of the unpromising prospects various attempts were made to sound the views of the Prussian Government with regard to an eventual peace on the basis of integrity of territory. The Russians were requested by the French to make known the terms on which the latter were prepared to treat. Communications at Berlin were made by the Italian Government, and the meddling Beust caused it to be announced to the Prussian Government that France would accept an armistice on the condition of territorial integrity. As he was a persona ingratissima to Bismarck, his efforts were not likely to meet with much success, and it was intimated to him and to the others that Bismarck reserved to himself all discussions concerning the conditions of peace, and that the Prussian officials at Berlin had no authority to enter upon such matters.
Before anything definite was decided upon as to how the Prussian Government was to be approached, Thiers started upon his historic mission to the Courts of the various Great Powers with the object of enlisting their practical sympathy on behalf of France.
Lord Lyons to Lord Granville.
Paris, Sept. 12, 1870.
The provisional Government, though the most moderate and regular I ever heard of, is sometimes a little sudden in its movements; and accordingly Thiers's mission was announced in the Journal Official before Jules Favre mentioned it to me, though I must do him the justice to say that he came at an early hour for the purpose. It is patriotic of Thiers to undertake it at his age, and with a prospect at best of assisting to make a bitter peace just supportable. I am glad you should hear from him the real state of things as to the internal condition and prospects of society and Government in France. He will also, I suppose, bring you the last word of the Provisional Government on peace. My impression is that they will give up almost anything to save territory; but they are, or at all events believe themselves, capable of a great coup de désespoir rather than yield that. The Reds within are more likely to give permanent trouble than the Prussians without.
Some of my colleagues are I am afraid rather cross at my not setting them the example of going off to Tours. The notion under present circumstances seems to me most injudicious. Either the French will make terms as soon as the enemy approach Paris, or being unable to do so, they will stand a siege and announce a desperate resistance. Upon this last contingency coming to pass we had better get out of Paris as fast as we can; but if there is negotiation we may possibly be of use here, while we could certainly be of none at Tours, to say nothing of the absurdity of our going off under present circumstances to Tours, without the Minister for Foreign Affairs.
The various interviews which took place between Thiers and Lord Granville have been described at length by Lord Fitzmaurice. In the main, the causes of the war, as expounded by Thiers, were in accordance with those described by Lord Lyons in the letters previously quoted, although he seems to have unjustly laid much of the responsibility upon the Empress, and to have unduly exalted his own prescience, having always been obsessed with the idea that he was a military genius. As for the form of government in France, although an Orleanist himself, he considered that Bonapartists, Bourbons, and Orleanists were all out of the question for the time being, and that a Republic was the only possible solution under existing circumstances. To put it shortly, he had started on his mission through Europe in order to obtain intervention, and had began with England in order to persuade her if possible to use her moral influence in securing peace. This application was supported by much high-sounding rhetoric on the subject of the ancient friendship between England and France, and of the necessity of the former retaining her due ascendency in the Councils of Europe, etc., etc., etc. Exhausted at the conclusion of his eloquent arguments, he went to sleep, as recorded by Lord Granville, without waiting to listen to the latter's reply, and the really practical part of the conversation seems to have been the suggestion that the way should be paved by the British Government for an interview between Jules Favre and Bismarck.
On the next day Thiers proposed that H.M. Government should at once recognize the Republic; but to this Lord Granville demurred, on the ground that it would be contrary to precedent, and that the Republic had at present no legal sanction, because no Constituent Assembly had yet decided on the future government of the country.