England and the Orléans Monarchy

by John Hall

Under ordinary circumstances, Louis Philippe would not have hesitated to dispense with the services of a consul, who had shown sympathy with a republican insurrection. But it being his secret policy to create every kind of embarrassment for Espartero he declined to recall M. de Lesseps.[745] The refusal of the French government aroused great indignation in Spain and materially contributed to increase the difficulties which were threatening to overwhelm the Regent.[746] The popular general, the idol of the nation, was now an object of execration with all parties. His stern repression of anarchy had gained for him the hatred of the extreme democrats, whilst his ignorance of the principles of representative government had involved him in innumerable disputes with the Cortes. The only remedy which he could apply to the situation was to prorogue the Chambers and assume the powers of a military dictator. But the army was no longer his willing instrument. The senior officers, with few exceptions, held Moderado opinions, and, for the past two years, General Narvaez and other agents of Christina had been busily engaged in undermining their loyalty. In the month of June, 1843, Brigadier Prim raised the cry of “Down with Espartero,” to which his troops responded eagerly. The revolution spread rapidly. Whilst regiment after regiment deserted the cause of the Regent, Narvaez appeared before Madrid at the head of a division. After a feeble resistance on the part of the national militia the capital opened its gates. In the south meanwhile, on July 29, Espartero, having been abandoned by his troops, embarked at Cadiz on a British ship, and sought refuge in England, where he was feasted by the City of London and acclaimed by the populace.

For some weeks prior to these events the threatening aspect of affairs had been a frequent subject of discussion between Louis Philippe, M. Guizot, and Lord Cowley. Both the King and his minister had but one remedy to suggest for the many ills from which Spain was suffering. Espartero, they declared, would speedily find that all his difficulties would disappear, were he to devote his whole attention to effecting the marriage of Isabella with a Bourbon. If England desired to see the dangers now threatening the Regent averted, let her join with France in urging him to adopt this policy.[747] Aberdeen, however, declined to entertain this request. The matter, he maintained, was one in which no Foreign Power had a right to interfere, whilst, “as to whether the proposed marriage would be likely to answer the expectations of those who counselled it, Her Majesty’s government did not feel called upon to express an opinion.”[748] But as the situation in Spain daily increased in gravity, Lord Cowley became persuaded that a fresh complication was to be apprehended. Should Espartero be overthrown, he warned his chief, it was greatly to be feared that the victorious party would demand the marriage of Isabella with a son of Louis Philippe. If such an alliance were to be proposed, the French nation would be flattered and might not improbably insist upon the offer being accepted, “even at the risk of war.”[749]

The downfall of Espartero and the new danger to which Cowley had drawn his attention caused Lord Aberdeen’s resolution to waver. He now proposed that France and England should unite their efforts for the purpose of restoring order in Spain. Under the circumstances this was practically an intimation that he was prepared to reconsider his often-repeated declaration that the marriage of Isabella was an exclusively Spanish affair. It was certainly interpreted in this sense by Louis Philippe and M. Guizot, who accepted the offer with the utmost alacrity. It was their policy to affect the greatest confidence that, in their hour of triumph, Christina and her friends would defer to the advice of France in all matters. But in their hearts they had doubtless grave misgivings upon the subject, and they were, consequently, only too delighted to obtain the support of England to their schemes. Marshal Sébastiani was at once despatched to London to confer upon the situation.[750] He was to assure Lord Aberdeen that Louis Philippe would never allow one of his sons to marry the Queen of Spain. Personally the King would prefer that she should marry a son of Don Carlos, but he would not oppose her union with any member of either the Spanish or Neapolitan branch of the House of Bourbon. Scarcely, however, had the marshal arrived in England than it was announced that Queen Victoria purposed to pay the king of the French a visit at the Château d’Eu, near le Tréport. Her Majesty was to be accompanied by her Foreign Secretary, who would thus be enabled personally to discuss matters with M. Guizot.

The Queen duly arrived at Eu, on September 2, and prolonged her stay until the 7th, as the guest of the King. In every respect the visit proved an immense success.[751] Her Majesty’s affectionate regard for Louis Philippe was destined, before long, to diminish greatly, but she appears always to have looked back with pleasure upon the days spent in company with his family at Eu.[752] Although social amenities were the feature of the visit, Lord Aberdeen and M. Guizot were enabled to discuss grave matters of State. Both appear to have been equally satisfied with the result of their informal conferences,[753] and their agreement upon Spanish affairs was afterwards confirmed by Aberdeen in an official despatch. “All that can at present be done,” he wrote, “is that both governments should act cordially and unreservedly together, taking for the principle of their conduct the real good of Spain, without reference to the supposed separate interests of either. . . . Her Majesty’s government are still of opinion that to the Queen and the nation should be left the selection of the Royal Consort. But they will not be found unwilling to offer such friendly counsel to the Spanish government as may aid them in coming to a sound decision. With this view, although Her Majesty’s government cannot admit that the preferable claims of any prince or family are such as to control the free choice of the Spanish government, they would be fully disposed to concur in the proposition of the Cabinet of the Tuileries and to recommend that the selection of the Queen’s Consort should be made from the descendants of Philip V. . . .”[754]

Shortly after the conclusion of the Queen’s visit to Eu, M. de Jarnac,[755] the French chargé d’affaires in London, was the guest of Lord Aberdeen at Haddo. On one occasion his host placed in his hands a letter in which he referred to the “cordial understanding,”which he now believed had been established between France and England.[756] This designation struck M. Guizot as singularly happy, and both he and Louis Philippe henceforward constantly employed it to describe the complete accord existing between the French and British governments.

An occasion quickly arose which enabled England to show that “the cordial understanding” was, so far as she was concerned, no diplomatic fiction. The Duc de Bordeaux, more commonly known by the title of Comte de Chambord which he shortly afterwards assumed, arrived in London, towards the end of November. The prince was the posthumous son of the Duc de Berri and the sole surviving male representative of the elder branch of the Bourbons. No sooner was he installed in the house, which had been taken for him in Belgrave Square, than hundreds of French legitimists flocked to London. They were for the most part members of the old noble families, but among the pilgrims was M. Berryer, the distinguished advocate and parliamentary orator. Even old Chateaubriand, who since the Revolution of July had taken no part in politics, journeyed to London to testify his devotion to the prince, whom he and his party acclaimed as Henri V. King of France and Navarre.[757] These proceedings aroused considerable excitement in France and caused Louis Philippe and his ministers some uneasiness. The French ambassador had already been instructed to urge that Queen Victoria should refuse to receive the young prince, on the ground that it was the evident intention of his adherents to give to his visit the character of a political demonstration against the House of Orleans. The Queen[758] had promptly signified her readiness to comply with this demand. It was not possible, however, to accede to a further request, made after the arrival of the Duc de Bordeaux in London, that the proceedings in Belgrave Square should be forcibly put a stop to, seeing that they in no way infringed the law of England. An intimation was, nevertheless, conveyed to His Royal Highness that Her Majesty greatly disliked these demonstrations and would, in consequence, be pleased to hear that he had decided to curtail his stay in London. This message produced the required effect. The Duc de Bordeaux, a few days later, departed from Belgrave Square, and, during the remainder of the time which he spent in England, his conduct was irreproachable.[759]

The promptitude with which the Queen and her government had responded to his wishes was very gratifying to Louis Philippe. In their Speeches from the Throne, both Sovereigns, at the opening of their respective Parliaments, alluded to “the cordial understanding” which had been established between their governments. Nevertheless, before the close of the session of 1844, the two countries were once more upon the brink of war. In the year 1839, a company had been formed at Nantes for the purpose of founding a French colony in New Zealand. The undertaking was supported by the government, which proposed annexing both islands. But, before the arrival of the French expedition, Captain Hobson proclaimed the sovereignty of Her Britannic Majesty over New Zealand, and its acquisition was duly notified in the London Gazette of October 2, 1840. The French government bowed before the accomplished fact, but prepared to seek another outlet in the Pacific. The following year, accordingly, a squadron, under the command of Admiral Dupetit-Thouars, was dispatched to take possession of the Marquesas Islands, where it was proposed to establish a penal colony. Not content, however, with carrying out his instructions the admiral, upon his own responsibility, proceeded to declare a French protectorate over Tahiti, the most important of the islands of the Society group. More than fifty years before, Tahiti had been visited by the first English missionaries. Owing to their unremitting efforts, the islanders had gradually been converted to the Protestant religion and had acquired civilized habits. On two occasions the Sovereign, Queen Pomare, had offered to place herself under the protection of the British flag, but both Canning and Palmerston had declined to accede to her proposal. In August, 1842, Admiral Dupetit-Thouars anchored off the island. He came to exact reparation for the alleged ill-treatment of two French priests. He demanded a large indemnity and threatened a bombardment, unless payment were made within twenty-four hours. It was altogether out of the power of Queen Pomare to comply with these conditions. Resistance was, however, out of the question. By the advice of the French consul, M. Meerenhout, she begged to be allowed to place herself under the protection of France. It was M. Meerenhout who was supposed to have counselled the French admiral to make his descent upon the island.[760]

The admiral’s report of his proceedings at Tahiti afforded little satisfaction either to the King or to M. Guizot.[761] But to have disavowed him would have exposed them to the charge of truckling to England—an accusation which would probably have proved fatal to the existence of the government. The establishment of a French protectorate over the islands was, accordingly, published in the Moniteur of March 20, 1843. The announcement was much resented in England. It was not possible, however, for England to object to France assuming a responsibility which she herself had twice declined to undertake. Lord Aberdeen’s communications with M. Guizot on the subject were, consequently, confined to the expression of a hope that the British missionaries would not be interfered with, and that the sovereign rights of Queen Pomare would be respected. With both these requests the French government readily promised to comply.[762] But, in the meantime, affairs at Tahiti had not been progressing smoothly.

When the Queen was induced to invoke the protection of France, Mr. Pritchard, the British consul, was absent from the island on a visit to Australia. Pritchard had, for a long time past, been engaged in missionary work and in trading in the South Seas. According to his own statement, however, upon his appointment to the post of consul at Tahiti, he had severed his connection with the Methodist missionary society of which he had been a member.[763] Meerenhout, the French consul, on the other hand, was an ardent Roman Catholic, but, like his British colleague, he too combined the business of trading with his official duties.[764] Racial prejudice, sectarian zeal and trade rivalry account sufficiently for the bitter enmity which existed between the two men. The news of Admiral Dupetit-Thouars’ proceedings reached Pritchard at Sidney, and his own correspondence shows that he started upon his return journey with the intention of doing everything in his power to induce the British government “to interfere” and with the expectation of finding “many difficulties to encounter.”[765] His first act upon his arrival at Tahiti was to instigate Queen Pomare, over whom he appears to have had great influence, to write to Her Britannic Majesty. In this curious document Queen Pomare, after inviting her “sister friend” to commiserate with her in the difficulties in which she was involved with the French, begged her “to send a large ship of war” to her assistance. The circumstances under which the demand for French protection had been extorted from her were narrated, much space being devoted to the part played in the transaction by M. Meerenhout, “a very bad and troublesome man.”[766]