"Be that as it may, I disdained having recourse to crooked and common-place expedients—I found myself so powerful!—I dared to strike from a situation too exalted. I wished to act like Providence, which, of its own accord, applies remedies to the wretchedness of mankind, by means occasionally violent, but for which it is unaccountable to human judgment.
“I candidly confess, however, that I engaged very inconsiderately in the whole affair; its immorality must have shewn itself too openly, its injustice too glaringly, and the transactions taken altogether, present a disgusting aspect, more particularly since my failure; for the outrage is no longer seen but in its hideous nakedness, stripped of all loftiness of idea, and of the numerous benefits which it was my intention to confer. Posterity, however, would have extolled it had I succeeded, and perhaps with reason, on account of its vast and happy results. Such is our lot, and such our judgment in this world!... But I once more declare, that, in no instance was there any breach of faith, any perfidy or falsehood, and, what is more, there was no occasion for them.” Here the Emperor resumed, in its totality and in its origin, the history of the affair of Spain, repeating many things which have been already noticed.
“The Court and the reigning family,” said the Emperor, "were split into two parties. The one was that of the monarch, blindly governed by his favourite, the Prince of the Peace, who had constituted himself the real king; the other was that of the heir presumptive, headed by his preceptor, Escoiquiz, who aspired to the government. These two parties were equally desirous of my support, and made me the most flattering promises. I was, no doubt, determined to derive every possible advantage from their situation.
"The favourite, in order to continue in office, as well as to shelter himself from the vengeance of the son, in case of the father’s death, offered me, in the name of Charles IV. to effect, in concert, the conquest of Portugal, reserving as an asylum for himself, the sovereignty of the Algarves.
"On the other hand, the prince of the Asturias wrote to me privately, without his father’s knowledge, soliciting a wife of my choice, and imploring my protection.
"I concluded an agreement with the former, and returned no answer to the latter. My troops were already admitted into the Peninsula, when the son took advantage of a commotion to make his father abdicate and to reign in his place.
"It has been foolishly imputed to me, that I took part in all these intrigues, but so far was I from having any knowledge of them, that the last event, in particular, disconcerted all my projects with the father, in consequence of which my troops were already in the heart of Spain. The two parties were aware, from that moment, that I could and ought to be the arbiter between them. The dethroned monarch and the son had recourse to me, the one for the purpose of obtaining vengeance, and the other, for the purpose of being recognised. They both hastened to plead their cause before me, and they were urged on by their respective councillors, those very persons who absolutely governed them, and who saw no means of preserving their own lives but by throwing themselves into my arms.
"The Prince of the Peace, who had narrowly escaped being murdered, easily persuaded Charles IV. and his queen to undertake the journey, as they had themselves been in danger of falling victims to the fury of the multitude.
“On his part, the preceptor Escoiquiz, the real author of all the calamities of Spain, alarmed at seeing Charles IV. protest against his abdication, and in dread of the scaffold, unless his pupil triumphed, exerted every means to influence the young King. This Canon, who had besides a very high opinion of his own talents, did not despair of making an impression on my decisions by his arguments, and of inducing me to acknowledge Ferdinand, making me a tender, on his own account, of his services to govern, altogether under my control, as effectually as the Prince of the Peace could, in the name of Charles IV. And it must be owned,” said the Emperor, "that, had I listened to several of his reasons, and adopted some of his ideas, it had been much better for me.
"When I had them all assembled at Bayonne, I felt a confidence in my political system, to which I never before had the presumption to aspire. I had not made my combinations, but I took advantage of the moment. I here found the Gordian knot before me, and I cut it. I proposed to Charles IV. and the Queen, to resign the crown of Spain to me, and to live quietly in France. They agreed, I may say, almost with joy, to the proposal, so inveterately were they exasperated against their son, and so earnestly did they and their favourite wish to enjoy, for the future, tranquillity and safety. The Prince of the Asturias made no extraordinary resistance to the plan, but neither violence nor threats were employed against him; and if he was influenced by fear, which I am very willing to believe, that could only be his concern.