Many have reproached Joseph for having accepted the crown. But it should be remembered that when he arrived at Bayonne, the treaty of abdication by the Spanish princes had already been signed. An assemblage of Spanish notables met him there, and entreated him to accept the crown, to rescue Spain from ruin. There seemed to be no dissent from the opinion that his presence would be the signal of peace and harmony, that it would calm agitation, and unite all parties. In a word, they declared that it was the only way to rescue the country from anarchy, and from those calamities which menaced its entire ruin. The intelligence of the nation exulted in the change, as promising a new era of equality and prosperity.
Efforts of the Monks.
On the 20th of July Joseph arrived in Madrid. There were about eighty thousand French troops in Spain. Much to Joseph's surprise and disappointment, he found, all over the kingdom, in the provinces, insurrection rising against him. These scattered bands soon amounted, it was estimated, to one hundred and fifty thousand men. The fanatic monks, alarmed in view of the changes which had been effected in Naples, were very active in rousing the peasantry to resistance. The British Government, which was then at war with Spain because it was the ally of Napoleon, instantly espoused the cause of the insurgents, and contributed all its energies of fleet and army and money to drive Joseph out of Spain.
Insurrections.
The new sovereign had entered Madrid without being greeted with any signal demonstrations of enthusiasm. In accordance with the established etiquette of the realm, he was received at the foot of the grand stairs of the palace by the nobility of the country, and was proclaimed king in the public squares and principal streets of Madrid with the accustomed ceremonies upon the advent of a new sovereign. Intensely occupied with the cares of his new government, Joseph did not, for some time, fully comprehend the perils which menaced him. Step by step he was led on, as he quelled here and there a popular insurrection, until he found himself involved in a stern war with the great mass of the Spanish peasantry, with all the priesthood fanning the flames of opposition, and the British Government energetically co-operating with purse and sword. It would require volumes to describe, with any degree of minuteness, the tremendous struggle. Napier has performed that task in his immortal work upon the Peninsular War.
Disappointment of Joseph.
Joseph soon awoke to a full realization of the peril of his position. On the 13th of July he wrote to the Emperor from Burgos at three o'clock in the morning, "It seems to me that no person has been willing to tell the exact truth to your Majesty. I ought not to conceal it. The task undertaken is very great. To accomplish it with honor will require immense resources. Fear does not make me see double.
"In leaving Naples, I have indeed yielded my life to the most hazardous events. My life is of but little consequence. I surrender it to you. But in order not to live with the shame attached to failure, great resources are requisite in men and money. I am not alarmed, in view of my position. But it is unique in history. I have not here a single partisan."
Again, on the 19th, he wrote, "It is evident that we have not the soil, since all the provinces are in insurrection or occupied by considerable armies of the enemy."
The Friends of Joseph overawed and silenced.