#the Duke of Istria

[the-adventures-of-lydia-brown]

To Mme. L. Brown,

I must begin this letter with an apology for its impertinence. You and I have never met face to face. However, I know that you were instrumental in the occurrence in my domain in which I was indisposed. For that, you have my gratitude.

As you may be aware, General Duroc and I are parents to a daughter, Helene, and I am seeking someone who may be able to supplement her education. I would like to speak with you at some point about your talents, and at a place and time of your choosing.

Attached to this letter is a small sachet of dried lavender from my gardens as a token of my appreciation. May it bring you pleasant dreams.

- J.B. Bessières, Duc d'Istrie, on @your-dandy-king's stationary

Now this is an occasion she had been looking forward to, despite being a little nervous about it. She isn't completely sure what parts of the truth of their mission she is free to share - honestly, she regrets not asking Murat for the specifics of what knowledge might harm his beloved while she had the chance. But her curiosity, in this case, is stronger than her worries.

To the Duke of Istria,

Do not worry, I do not find the act of sending a letter too forward from you, nor do I take the slightest offense. It is often the case here, after all, that one receives a note from a complete stranger and we already have several common acquaintances! (Well, acquaintances to me, your relationships with them are far more substantial...)

I am honoured that you consider me a good potential tutor for little Helene and I would be delighted to answer any questions you might have for me. As for the time and place, I suppose tomorrow morning is as good a time as any - and while I would gladly invite you here, I'm afraid the less-than-solid nature of some parts of my realm might not exactly be the pinnacle of comfort and safety, so I would suggest meeting in the vicinity of the Cathedral of Cahors in @your-dandy-king's domain, if that suits you. Luckily, I am quite able to find my way there.

I wish you and your family the best and I am looking forward to our meeting!

Sincerely,

Lydia B.

P.S.

I realised I forgot to thank you for the lavender, which is honestly baffling, considering it's one of my favourite flowers. You have chosen well and your gift is much appreciated.

[murillo-enthusiast]

🧨 Bessières

Send 🧨 for my muse to start an argument with yours

... The domesticity of your other selves concerns me, Istria, and I must ask if you-

Bessières: You... do not need to question my commitment, Monsieur le Maréchal.

We cannot have half-measures here. We must know our duty. Everything is at stake. The enemy slipped through your grasp, Marshal!

Bessières: It is hardly because I possess... some inner desire to retire that Roi Nicolas escaped!

Yet it is undeniable that your return was sparked by a coincidental rendezvous with a self that you very well might envy, and I do not believe that you caused the incident that lead to Ney's rescue mission, but the enemy might very well have taken advantage of you!

Bessières: ... We... are having this conversation in the echo of your home village, Monsieur.

That fact does not escape me. I am thankful for this, yes. And it is because I cannot give this up that I approach you with such concerns.

Bessières: ... My other selves are not relevant to my mission, Dalmatia, and they do not reflect on my resolve.

See to it that they do not.

[armagnac-army]

OOC: The Napoleonic Askblog/Roleplay Scene Directory

Here's an Out Of Character post listing the blogs I'm aware of in the Napoleonic RPF Roleplay Scene! It's OOC because Lannes would want to make sarcastic remarks with typos.

If you want (or don't want) your blog on this list, message me and whether you want a main/other blog associated with your name or whether you want to be anonymised! Also happy to include non-Frenchmen and Frev folks.

Doubles or multiple versions of people are welcome, this is a varied afterlife. We all have our different ideas for what this afterlife is like as well.

Feel free to reblog or link to this!

And now we have a OOC discord server to chat about all of this! Feel free to join if you'd like!

The Marshalate

armagnac-army - Jean Lannes, Duke of Montebello - played by cadmusfly

murillo-enthusiast - Jean-de-Dieu Soult, Duke of Dalmatia, and ADCs - played by cadmusfly

@le-brave-des-braves - Michel Ney, Prince of the Moskva, Duke of Elchingen, and ADCs - played by @neylo

@your-dandy-king - Joachim Murat, King of Naples - played by @phatburd

@chicksncash - André Masséna, Prince of Essling, Duke of Rivoli, and others - played by @chickenmadam also playing as his ADC, with appearances from Marshal Augereau, the Cuirassier Generals d'Hautpoul and Nansouty, and the Horse Grenadier General Lepic

@your-staff-wizard - Louis-Alexandre Berthier, Prince of Neuchâtel and Valangin, Prince of Wagram - played by @chickenmadam, as above

@perdicinae-observer - Louis-Nicolas Davout, Prince of Eckmühl, Duke of Auerstaedt - played by @mbenguin

@bow-and-talon - Laurent de Gouvion Saint-Cyr, Marquis of Gouvion-Saint-Cyr

@france-hater - Jean-Baptiste Bernadotte, or Karl XIV Johan of Sweden, played by @deathzgf also includes the Duke of Wellington and Prince Pyotr Ivanovich Bagration

@simple-giant-ed - Édouard Mortier, Duke of Treviso, played by @isa-ko

@bayard-de-la-garde - Jean-Baptiste Bessières, Duke of Istria

@le-bayard-polonaise - Prince Józef Poniatowski of Poland

@oudinot-still-alive - Nicolas Charles Oudinot duc de Reggio, played by @spaceravioli2

@beausoleil-de-bellune - Claude-Victor Perrin, Duke of Belluno

@commandant-des-traitres - Auguste de Marmont, Duke of Ragusa

The Grande Armée

@general-junot - Jean-Andoche Junot, Duke of Abrantes - played by @promises-of-paradise

@askgeraudduroc - Géraud Duroc, Duke of Frioul, Grand-Marshal of the Palace - played by @sillybumblebeegirl, also with cameos from Marshal Bessières shared with your-dandy-king

@trauma-and-truffles - Baron Dominique-Jean Larrey, Surgeon to Napoleon and the Imperial Guard - played by @hoppityhopster23 who also plays his modern assistant

@generaldesaix - Louis Charles Antoine Desaix de Veygoux, most likely would have been a marshal if he lived - played by @usergreenpixel

@messenger-of-the-battlefield - Marcellin Marbot, aide-de-camp of maréchal Lannes - played by @a-system-of-nerds (Inactive)

@le-dieu-mars - Jean-Baptiste Kleber, General - played by @chickenmadam

@puddinglesablonniere, Charles-Étienne César Gudin de La Sablonnière, Gemeral of Davout's Corps

@francoislejeunes, Baron Louis-François Lejeune, ADC to Berthier, Artist and Engineer

@troboi1806, Jacques de Trobriand, ADC to Marshal Davout

@cynics-and-cynology, Captain Elzéar Blaze

The Bonaparte Family

@carolinemurat - Caroline Murat née Buonaparte, Queen of Naples - played by @usergreenpixel

@alexanderfanboy - Napoleon Bonaparte, The Big Cheese

@frencheaglet - Napoleon II, also known as Franz, Duke of Reichstadt, played by @usergreenpixel

@rosie-of-beauharnais - Rose Beauharnais, also known as Josephine Bonaparte, once Empress of the French

@le-fils - Eugène Beauharnais, Prince of the Empire, Bonaparte's stepson, played by @josefavomjaaga

@jbonapartes - Jérôme Bonaparte, King of Westphalia, Prince of Montfort

@napoleon-bonapartee - Napoleon Bonaparte, The Head Honcho

Other Notable Personages

@askjackiedavid - Jacques Louis David, neoclassical painter - played by @sillybumblebeegirl

@lazarecarnot - Lazare Carnot, mathematician, military officer, politician and a leading member of the Committee of Public Safety

Not French

Russians

@the-blessed-emperor - Tsar Alexander I (Inactive)

@loyal-without-flattery - General Aleksey Andreevich Arakcheev, who runs His Imperial Majesty's Own Chancellery (Inactive)

@misha-wants-to-go-home - Count Mikhail Andreyevich Miloradovich, played by @spaceravioli2

@catherinesucks - Tsar Paul I of Russia, father of Alexander I

@ask-tsaralexander - Tsar Alexander I, played by @goddammitjosef

British

@the1ronduke - Arthur Wellesley, Duke of Wellington, played by @spaceravioli2

@banasstre - Banastre Tarleton, Major-General

@pakenham-kitty - Catherine Wellesley, Duchess of Wellington

Spanish

@headlessgenius - Francisco José de Goya y Lucientes, Painter and proud Spaniard

Original Characters and Friends

@the-adventures-of-lydia-brown - Lydia Brown, a jack of all trades and problem solver finding herself in this strange realm with all these dead Frenchmen

Hopster, trauma-and-truffles's modern time travelling assistant

Madam DuQuay, ADC who takes no nonsense, helping out chicksncash, your-staff-wizard and le-dieu-mars

[josefavomjaaga]

Elie Baudus about Bessières' death

Another brief snippet from the "Études sur Napoléon" by Elie Baudus, one of Bessières' aides, about the last moments of his marshal.

[...] The affair began. The Duke of Elchingen having taken the village of Rippach, occupied by the enemy, the Duke of Istria hastened to reconnoitre the defile which our troops had just taken possession of in order to cross it with part of his cavalry. On arriving on the hill overlooking this village, as one leaves it by the road to Leipzig, he found himself facing a battery of artillery that the Prussians had just set up to enfilade the main road. The first cannonball that went off took the head of a marshal-des-logis of the Polish chevau-légers of the guard who, for several years, had been serving as the marshal's orderly. He was distressed by this loss and galloped away.

However, after examining the enemy's position for some time, he returned near this unfortunate corpse, accompanied by Captain Bourjolly, his mameluk Mirza and some officers, and said to them: "I want this young man buried. Besides, the emperor would be unhappy if he saw a non-commissioned officer of his guard killed there; for, if this post were retaken, it would be unfortunate if, at the sight of this uniform, our adversaries were persuaded that the guard had entered the field". A cannonball fired by the same battery killed him as he finished saying these words. The marshal put his telescope back in his pocket. His left hand, which held the reins, was shattered, his body pierced and his right elbow broken. His watch, although untouched, stopped on impact; it still marks the fatal hour of the marshal's death; it has never been wound since.

An act of charity towards one of his fellow men and the fulfilment of his duties towards his prince and his country, such were the sentiments that occupied the Marshal's last moments, just as they had nobly filled his soul during his life. We will always consider the warning he received from Providence about his impending death as a reward for all the good he did, before our very eyes, for the unfortunate victims of war; no doubt Providence wanted to grant him the immense benefit of having the time to prepare for death with a few religious thoughts.

[handfuloftime]

(A while ago @apurpledust mentioned wanting to know more about Duroc's children, so here's what information I have)

Duroc and his wife, Maria de las Nieves Martínez de Hervas, had two children, both of whom died tragically young. (Hervas left instructions that her gravestone should be engraved with "To the unhappiest of mothers".)

Their first child, Napoléon Louis Sidoine Joseph Duroc, was born on 24 February 1811 in Paris. Named for the emperor and his two grandfathers (Claude Sidoine de Michel du Roc and José Martínez de Hervas), he lived for just over fourteen months. The infant’s health was never good; Duroc wrote to Bertrand in March 1812 that “[Hervas] is doing well but her son has been and always is ill”. (As Duroc’s biographer Danielle Meyrueix notes, when writing of his wife and child he habitually referred to “her son” rather than “our son”. Perhaps not the most engaged of fathers.) Napoléon died on 6 May 1812 at Maidières in Lorraine. The architect Pierre Fontaine, noting in his journal that Hervas had asked him to design a tomb for her lost son, wrote that the child had been “a few days older than the King of Rome and destined to enjoy at that prince’s side all the favor with which the Emperor honored his father.”

Their daughter Hortense Eugénie Nieves Duroc was born on 14 May 1812, eight days after the young Napoléon’s death. (In a letter, Duroc implied that the news of the boy’s death had been kept from Hervas, who was in Paris, to avoid imperiling her health.) Named for her godmother, Hortense de Beauharnais, she was baptized in January 1813 alongside the duke of Bassano's daughter. After Duroc’s death in May 1813, Napoleon transferred the duchy of Friuli to her, writing to Hervas that Hortense would be “assured of my constant protection”. He also remembered her in his will, leaving her a large sum of money and recommending, in one last attempt at matchmaking, that she marry Bessières’s son, the duke of Istria. Hortense’s aunt wrote in 1823 that “Hortense is perfectly sweet, she’s a rare child for her spirit and intelligence, who her poor father would have been happy to see so fine in all respects”. She died of pneumonia on 24 September 1829 after three days of illness, aged seventeen.

A 1933 biography of Charles-Nicolas Fabvier (Hervas’s second husband) identifies this painting by Jeanne-Elisabeth Chaudet as a young Hortense Duroc. It was sold at an auction a few years ago with the title “Young Embroideress”, so either the sitter’s identity has been lost since then or it may never have been Hortense at all.

Duroc’s long liaison with the dancer Emilie Bigottini may also have resulted in at least one child. Felix Bouvier, writing a biographical sketch of Bigottini in 1909, claimed that “children were born of this irregular union, a daughter and a son named Odilon”. However, Odilon (full name Pierre Dominique Jean Marie Odilon Michel du Roc), born in 1801, was the son of Duroc’s cousin Géraud Pierre Michel du Roc, the marquis de Brion. On Duroc’s death, Napoleon made Odilon a page in the imperial household. (This may have given rise to Bouvier’s claim, as it seems to have confused people at the time. Caulaincourt had been tasked with sorting out Duroc’s affairs, including a substantial amount of money for Bigottini, and Duroc’s sister Jeanne implied that he had gotten the wrong impression from one of Duroc’s requests: “On the subject of the allowance for little Odilon, M. the duke of Vicenza was misled…he took a step which pained me very much”.) As for the daughter, all I’ve been able to find so far is a remark from Laure Junot that “It was known that the count Armand de Fuentès had had a daughter with Mademoiselle Bigottini, and that Duroc was in the same position”.

[rosie-of-beauharnais]

have you been aware of the licentious behaviour exhibited by the duke of frioul, the duke of istria, the king of naples and his wife, who are all engaged in... a "neapolitan polycule"

beloved anonyme, this news have caught me by surprise, partly... i didn't expect it from the duke of istria and frioul, this seems out of their character, nonetheless i am not the right person to judge them. i made amends with the roi, but he didn't tell me anything of the sort.

i would have liked himself to inform me of it, you shouldn't be afraid to do it, @your-dandy-king, what more are you hiding from me?

[your-dandy-king]

Updated 30 April 2024

Greetings my loyal subjects and, ahem, others!

It is I, your Dandy King, Joachim Murat! I have finally decided to make -- what is this called again -- a blog for myself. Isn't it lovely? Lannes seemed to be having so much fun, I just couldn't sit by. Even Soult is enjoying this far more than he lets on. I think you call it FOMO, these days, right?

Anyhow, I've decided to change my mind and opened my inbox for your questions and queries. I was, I admit, a little uncertain of this place when I first arrived but, by the by, but I shall deal with it as it comes! Please drop your questions into "The Royal Inbox." I cannot guarantee I can or will answer everything, but I will try.

I will be making my appearances on the blogs of my friends and colleagues as well, so I shall be seeing you around. Ta!

Here's a handy guide to some of those friends, colleagues, and more.

@armagnac-army: Jean Lannes, Duke of Montebello, my buddy Gascon, the Greatest Gascon, that sheep guy

@askgeraudduroc: Geraud Christophe Michel Duroc, Grand Marshal of the Palace, beloved, Duke of Frioul, and Jean-Baptiste Bessières, also beloved, Duke of Istria, hunnybunkins

@le-brave-des-braves: Michel Ney, Duke of Elchingen, that ginger cannonball, do not taunt happy fun Ney

@murillo-enthusiast: Jean de Dieu Soult, Duke of Dalmatia, don't call him Nicolas, master of baked goods, has nothing to do with spotted dogs

@general-junot: Jean Andoche Junot, Duke of Abrantes, unhinged homewrecker

@chicksncash: André Masséna, Duke of Rivoli, Dear Child of Five-Fingered Discounts

@your-staff-wizard: Louis-Alexandre Berthier, Prince of Neuchatel, eternity's paper pusher

@trauma-and-truffles: Dominique-Jean Larrey, who knew that a doctor is still useful when you're dead

@askjackiedavid: Jacques Louis David, painter, mostly harmless

@carolinemurat: Caroline Murat, loving wife and beloved partner, the Queen of Naples

@generaldesaix: Louis Desaix, the prankster of the Grand Armée

@messenger-of-the-battlefield: Marceillin Marbot, one of Lannes' ADCs with uh, interesting perspectives

@perdicinae-observer: Louis-Nicolas Davout, Duke of Auerstadt, the Iron Marshal

@frencheaglet: Napoleon II, the boy!

@alexanderfanboy: 🤨

Jean-Baptiste Bessières occasionally wanders over from @askgeraudduroc, and his text will appear in green. Like this!

This is a joke RP account run by @phatburd for one of Napoleon's marshals and brother-in-law, Joachim Murat. He's not the only Murat out there in Tumblr RP land, and (I think) he peacefully co-exists with them all. All of them are simply facets and mirrors of Joachim Murat, and he loves nothing better to have more of himself around. We are all Murat.

This blog should be considered a 0% source of historical accuracy.

OOC Ramble 30 April 2024: On our Discord server @askgeraudduroc brought up voice claims for our RPs of various Napoleonic figures. Tiny Media's take on Murat earwormed me awhile back, probably due to having grown up in the American South. So in my head, Murat's been speaking with a Texan drawl this whole time.

Historically, Bessières had the same accent as Murat, just not quite as thick, so I've been hearing Bessie in my head with a not-as-thick Texas accent. 👀

I don't like writing in dialect, however, and I've been avoiding it due to not wanting to break immersion but with @askgeraudduroc's blessing, I'm going to drop in a few more Texan-isms into their dialogue. And "Hunnybunnkins." That's my Murat's pet name for Bessie. Is he going to Calle Bessie "Hunnybunnkins"? You betcha!

User icon art by @cadmusfly: Murat striking a Barbie pose on his trusty horse!

[bayard-de-la-garde]

The letter is in a very familiar handwriting and is sealed with the seal of the Duke of Istria.

Salutations, Duc d'Istrie,

I hope that this letter finds you in good health. I must begin this letter by apologising for the confusion you must surely have endured in regards to hearing of duplicate selves. This peculiar afterlife we find ourselves in is prone to offering up familiar faces that may or may not act in familiar ways, with idiosyncratic rules of existence affecting each of us in different and distinct manners. Some of those faces are particularly familiar, such in the case of the one we share.

Salut, Jean-Baptiste Bessières, from one who bears a startling resemblance to yourself. I am the one you may have heard of in passing who remains on active duty alongside Marshals Lannes and Soult in leading l'armée de l'au-delà. I cannot write much about the enemy we fight on account of operational secrecy, but I am confident in saying this enemy does not pose a threat to you.

Other acquaintances and colleagues that you may come into contact with are for the most part happily retired. This includes the other Jean-Baptiste Bessières that you have surely heard of, a very pleasant fellow involved in a very unusual but peaceful matrimony with Joachim Murat and Geraud Duroc. I state this to warn you of this interesting arrangement so it does not come as an undue shock, for I myself was rather surprised to learn of this. Duroc and M. Bessières have a lovely daughter named Hélène who has a very strong resemblance to her fathers- and to write of such things as "fathers" shows just how pleasantly strange this afterlife is, and how removed it can be from the standards of our time. I myself have met Hélène and found her to be very charming, indeed.

If there is a need to disambiguate, well, the other M. Bessières has called himself "Papa Jean" and myself "Uncle Baptiste". I have also heard others call me "the hunter" on account of my duties. The question of how to precisely disambiguate the three of us is not one I have an exact solution for, though perhaps it will partially solve itself when I return to my duty and begin my travels again. I do not know when that will be, but if our correspondence continues, I will surely inform you.

Might I ask if you have heard from Adelle, or your children? I have unfortunately not had contact with them. If you have, I will not intrude or ask anything of you as to not disturb them unduly; it will be enough for me to know that there is a version of them that is well. I must unfortunately warn you that M. Bessières, the one who resides with Duroc and Murat, did not respond so well when I posed a similar question to him; I hope that he will be able to make his peace with such matters soon.

I do not currently have a fixed address, but any letters for me specifically may be addressed to either Marshal Lannes at @armagnac-army or Marshal Soult at @murillo-enthusiast. Do respond at your pleasure.

Votre très humble et obéissant serviteur,

Bessières

Salutations, my dear other Jean-Baptiste Bessières.

I thank you for your regard, and likewise wish you good health and success in your secretive military endeavors.

I have corresponded with our third likeness, and although Hélène's existence rather stunned me I also must admit she is an adorable child.

I do, indeed, have news of Adelle. From me to you, as we have shared the same life, I can admit we went through a rather delicate time concerning certain things that came to light after our passing, regarding V. O. But in her infinite kindness and Christian charity she forgave all, and we are now learning to live past it. I must admit her magnanimity, and the period of time where there was un froid between us, has rekindled my appreciation of her into the flame of the first years.

As for our children, I have heard much of dear Napoléon, who had a successful career in politics and was decorated of the Légion d'honneur. He has died in 1853, and I find myself faced in this afterlife with a man of 51 years, dignified and wise. I let you imagine the effect this can have on a father who last saw a boy of ten years.

As for our other children, getting a hold of them has been strangely difficult. Our son assures me that they lived well and that they are not deliberately avoiding me, rather the strange and frustrating workings of this afterlife.

My regards,

Votre humble serviteur,

Jean-Baptiste Bessières

[askgeraudduroc]

I wonder if the Duke of Montebello and the Duke of Dalmatia would be willing to help you jailbreak Junot? Maybe they can rope in the King of Naples and the Duke of Istria to help!

Oh! What a wonderful idea!!!

I'm sure Bessie wouldn't have any problems, and i think that they took Junot in a illegal way, as he was now Lannes patient!!!

@armagnac-army, @murillo-enthusiast, would you guys please lend me a hand?

[microcosme11]

Description of Duroc’s character

The next morning, I was with the Duke of Frioul (Duroc); we talked about the successes at the beginning of the campaign, and we expressed great regret at the loss of Marshal Bessières. I will never forget the last words of this conversation: “This is going on too long,” he said, “We will all be killed.” A few days later he was fatally struck by a stray cannonball, as the Duke of Istria had been. He lived for a few hours, taking with him the consolation of having witnessed the deep sorrow of the Emperor, who only left him after his urgent pleading. I place among the most important losses Napoleon could have, that of the Grand Marshal, Duke of Frioul. He was barely forty years old when he perished. His figure was fine and not without elegance: his face was animated with bright and fresh colors: his countenance was grave, austere, even icy, when he listened to a person against whom he was prejudiced, but pleasant and gentle in the opposite case. In general, he was an observer because he was cold and serious. He naturally had the tact of propriety, and absolutely refused to do anything he thought would harm that. Discretion and firmness were the first elements of his character. He established the order of his service in a fixed, positive and invariable manner: reserved, due to the advantage of his position, to his personal qualities, and, to his immense credit, he never took pride in it; he lived for devotion: all other considerations disappeared. He was familiar with the smallest and most elevated details of the palace's civil and military administration: his work was always clear, always easy. Rigid observer of the regulations he had adopted for the emperor, he knew how to demand of others the same observance, and never compromised with negligence and forgetfulness. He loved the arts, he honored talent; and although he could have surrendered himself without fear to his wise and enlightened taste, he was directed only by the relation which the productions of genius could have with the glory of the emperor. Access to his apartments, always difficult, was never so for famous men who could contribute to the splendor of Napoleon's reign. Nobody has better known the tastes and character of this prince than himself, and exercised over him a more marked and sustained influence: the peculiar thing was that the emperor himself recognized this influence and did not seek to escape it. The just mind and sagacity of the Duke of Frioul always prevented him from clashing head-on with Napoleon's first actions, which were sometimes too quick and too hasty; a few hours later he would divert the effects. His aim was always to preserve useful and devoted subjects: he wished to make the emperor loved and to reinforce public opinion; but perhaps he disdained a little too much on his own account to make a title for himself recognized by those whom he obliged in return, and who often ignored him. One constant truth is that Napoleon never held a secret from him, while he kept secrets from everyone, even from the Prince of Neufchâtel [Berthier]. Duroc was the conscience of Napoleon, who explained to him his reasons for discontent like a litigant desirous of obtaining the suffrage of his judge. This arrangement did as much honor to one as to the other.

Mémoires anecdotiques sur l'interieur de Palais de Napoléon V.2, by Bausset-Roquefort

[austrohungarianfff]

My pronouns are: AHFFF the First, by the Grace of God Emperor of Austria, Apostolic King of Hungary, King of Bohemia, King of Dalmatia, Croatia, Slavonia, Galicia and Lodomeria and Illyria; King of Jerusalem etc., Archduke of Austria; Grand Duke of Tuscany and Cracow, Duke of Lorraine, of Salzburg, Styria, Carinthia, Carniola and of Bukovina; Grand Prince of Transylvania; Margrave of Moravia; Duke of Upper and Lower Silesia, of Modena, Parma, Piacenza and Guastalla, of Oświęcim, Zator and Ćeszyn, Friuli, Ragusa (Dubrovnik) and Zara (Zadar); Princely Count of Habsburg and Tyrol, of Kyburg, Gorizia and Gradisca; Prince of Trent (Trento) and Brixen; Margrave of Upper and Lower Lusatia and in Istria; Count of Hohenems, Feldkirch, Bregenz, Sonnenberg, etc.; Lord of Trieste, of Cattaro (Kotor), and over the Windic march; Grand Voivode of the Voivodship of Serbia. / AHFFF the First, by the Grace of God Emperor of Austria, Apostolic King of Hungary, King of Bohemia, King of Dalmatia, Croatia, Slavonia, Galicia and Lodomeria and Illyria; King of Jerusalem etc., Archduke of Austria; Grand Duke of Tuscany and Cracow, Duke of Lorraine, of Salzburg, Styria, Carinthia, Carniola and of Bukovina; Grand Prince of Transylvania; Margrave of Moravia; Duke of Upper and Lower Silesia, of Modena, Parma, Piacenza and Guastalla, of Oświęcim, Zator and Ćeszyn, Friuli, Ragusa (Dubrovnik) and Zara (Zadar); Princely Count of Habsburg and Tyrol, of Kyburg, Gorizia and Gradisca; Prince of Trent (Trento) and Brixen; Margrave of Upper and Lower Lusatia and in Istria; Count of Hohenems, Feldkirch, Bregenz, Sonnenberg, etc.; Lord of Trieste, of Cattaro (Kotor), and over the Windic march; Grand Voivode of the Voivodship of Serbia.

[the-adventures-of-lydia-brown]

what have you witnessed of the dead frenchmen that you have met? what are your opinions on them?

Hmm, let me think...

I met Monsieur Bory first and I found him most agreeable. I can relate to his curiosity and scientific excitement very much. I wish him nothing but the best of luck in his future endeavours.

... Marshal Soult, the Duke of Dalmatia. As proud as he is competent, and twice as intimidating. Honestly, I was a bit afraid he'd just send me away as fast as I came when I announced I could provide musical support, especially as I wasn't exactly sure about the specifics myself. I have to say, I was really relieved that my assumption regarding this realm proved correct and my presence was actually helpful. I can't imagine how his aides maintain their cheerful attitude and continue to get into trouble occasionally... But then again, maybe I'm the one who's too easily affected by the expectations and demands of those around me...

I cannot leave out the one who stood up for me in the above-mentioned situation, Marshal Lannes.

Steady as a wall of stone, ever the shoulder to lean on (- even stand on. From this point of view, he truly is a giant -)

I really hope he has someone to share his troubles with, if or when they are too much for one man to take, I hope he has someone who truly understands him.

Someone not unlike General Duroc, the Duke of Frioul. But he, too, would and did tear himself apart to make sure everything goes smoothly and no-one else gets hurt. He lays so much weight on his shoulders - shoulders that, when last I left him, didn't even have the corresponding limbs attached. He deserves his rest. His value does not only lie in his silent, often thankless endeavours.

Thus we get to the King of Naples, to Marshal Joachim Murat, whom I didn't have the chance to meet until the mission was over. His reputation preceded him to me and is quite correct. Sparkling, flamboyant and a free spirit, he seems very wholehearted about all he does. I'm... really glad he didn't take offence when I... yelled at him. I suppose when you're accustomed to throwing yourself into danger, you inevitably tend to get a little more casual with potential hazards...

Now we get to the people who aren't exactly frenchmen and those I haven't exactly met.

First of them, the Queen of Naples, Caroline Murat. A formidable lady, confident and able to sway many situations the way she wants. But I think most often what she wants is simply whatever's best for the people she loves.

Then Louise Soult, who, when I saw her, was taking care of little Helene. She looked really proficient. I must admit the responsibility of taking care of a child intimidates me a little personally - one must have empathy, attention, think strategically and often outside the box! But little Helene did seem to be a darling, definitely taking after Duroc in her cheerful nature...

Which brings me to the last person, one I haven't exactly met, but one I can still claim to know something about - Marshal Bessières, the Duke of Istria. Reserved, passionate, sociable, reclusive, immaculate, flawed - quite aware that the world is a stage, ready and eager to play his role. To have one's demons manifest so physically... I can imagine he must have squashed them under his heel whenever they threatened to rear their heads, unsure where he can let them out, when he can be fully himself, ever vigilant, ever cautious.

I do hope one day he realises many of the eyes that regard him are much kinder on him than he thinks, at least here, in this afterworld.

I would ask you one thing, my friend. Do not actively bring this letter to anyone's attention, especially not the ones mentioned here. If they find out, they find out - I have nothing to truly hide, but still... these are just my incomplete, flawed, biased impressions. None of them are set in stone and the less words I can be held to, the better.

Take care,

Lydia

[murillo-enthusiast]

Lannes: YOU OKAY THERE DALMATIE?

Soult: I'm busy. Go away, you're dead.

Lannes: YEAH SO ARE YOU, ARE YOU EVEN LISTENING TO ME

Soult: If we attack the enemy's flank here...

Lannes: SO THAT'S A NO ON BAKING A CAKE FOR MY WEDDING TO BESSIE HUH

Bessières: Why are you still insisting on marrying my other self..?

Lannes: ITS LIKE A DUEL BUT LESS SWORDS

Bessières: ... And somehow, Marshal Soult imagining that he is involved in some long lost battle and ignoring us is coming across as more sane than you.

Soult: Keep it down! I am TRYING to focus on writing these orders for the Emperor!

Lannes: MAYBE IF THIS IS STILL GOING WHEN WE GET MARRIED THIS BATTLE CAN BE THE ENTERTAINMENT

[josefavomjaaga]

Elie Baudus about Murat's departure in Posen, 1813

Once more Elie Baudus, former aide-de-camp to Marshal Bessières, in the second volume of his "Etudes sur Napoléon". (Another snippet is here.) This time it’s about Murat deserting leaving the army at Posen in January 1813. I was wondering how Bessières and his staff reacted to this news, especially as Elie makes it sound as if they were there at the time.

Headquarters left Elbing on 11 January to take up residence in Posen. When it reached that town, the King of Naples immediately announced that he was leaving the army on account of his health, either because he was really ill or because his indisposition was due solely to his anxiety about what might happen in his states, during his absence, in the political situation in which Europe was about to find itself. All that could be said to him about the impropriety of taking such a step without the emperor's consent could do nothing to change his mind; he handed over command to the viceroy and left for his capital.

What Elie possibly does not know or at least does not write: Murat had asked for permission to leave the army at least twice, admitting himself that the task was beyond him, and apparently had never even received a reply from Napoleon. And of course it would be interesting to know if Bessières was among those who tried to talk Murat out of his idea and to make him stay on his post, and how Murat reacted to these attempts.

Napoleon's departure had been applauded because the inflexible necessity which forced him to it was understood; [...]

That may be a bit of an exaggeration or generalisation. I understand there was quite some grumbling in the army (Oh, look, he’s pulling another Egyptian exit on us, etc.). Even Elie himself admits that the last remnants of military discipline broke down as soon as Napoleon was gone. There must have been a reason for that.

[…] Murat's departure, on the contrary, aroused strong indignation; this abandonment, in the situation in which the army found itself, was not noble, and it took no less than the great actions which he carried out a few months later at Dresden and Leipsick to weaken the irritation which this conduct had aroused against him in all ranks. Nothing can excuse such a mistake, for even if we consider it only from a political point of view it was enormous. If this prince feared for the preservation of his crown, should he not have considered that it was only within the French army that he could work effectively to consolidate it on his head? That was the key to the vault; if it was missing, it was obvious that all the stones of the edifice would crumble.

The talents and the firmness of character that Prince Eugène had recently displayed in this campaign had already won him the confidence and the attachment of the army; so there was more anger than regret at the news of the change in our general-in-chief. Marshal Bessières was happier than anyone else when it was announced that the emperor was definitively entrusting the viceroy with the power of which he had only been temporarily invested upon the departure of the king of Naples. What, for the Duke of Istria, was both the result of a long-standing attachment rooted in paternal feelings and deeply felt esteem, was dictated to the other chiefs by the latter motive. They all did their best to prove it to this young prince, and we will never forget the interesting spectacle offered by his salons in Posen in this respect. There was something touching about the marks of deference with which all these old glories of France surrounded him.

[Insert image of dozens of decorated army generals surrounding an 8-year-old: "You’ll get us out of this shit, right, little one?" - Eugène nodding very seriously: "Uh-huh."]

I would also like to point out that the young prince at the time was 31 years old, balding and loosing his teeth… But it’s nice to see Bessières’ reaction to his "apprentice" being in charge now.

The viceroy must have been delighted; [...]

… yeah… guessing from the letters he wrote to Auguste … not really all that much ...

[…] it was a fine reward for all the great things he had already done; it was a powerful encouragement to persevere on the straight and honourable path he had adopted; so he did not deviate from it for a single moment until the last catastrophe of the great man who called him his son.

Uhm, Elie? I think Marmont and d’Anthouard would like to have a word with you.

Posterity will do him this justice, that his entire conduct completely justified the special attachment Napoleon always had for him; a true attachment, animating Napoleon's words, whenever he had to express himself officially on the subject of his adopted son, with an affectionate feeling never shown in favour of any other member of the imperial family.

The keyword in this passage is "officially". And the fact Elie adds it makes me wonder if he (or rather Bessières - or possibly Elie's father through Murat?) may have known about some of the private correspondence Napoleon sent to Eugène, and that treated his stepson quite differently.

It was not only with regard to Napoleon that the Viceroy's conduct was noble and worthy of admiration; even after the Restoration we saw him know how, without failing in the duties of filial piety, to satisfy at the same time those of a good Frenchman; for having come to Paris in 1814, when all the events had taken place, he soon realised that they were trying to abuse the attachment that the army had for him in order to disturb his homeland. He did not hesitate for a moment to make this cruel and painful sacrifice, so that his name would not be mixed up in the intrigues that have so tarnished the glory of some of his comrades in arms.

That’s the same thing Napoleon was disappointed about on Saint Helena, I presume, when he did not see anybody to lead the army and cause another uprising in his own favour.

[leona-florianova]

Whenever I see these Kaiser Franz Josef canned goods, it brings me so much...im not sure if its joy but.. yeah its hilarious because

look

 Imagine you are Francis Joseph the First, by the Grace of God Emperor of Austria, Apostolic King of Hungary, King of Bohemia, King of Dalmatia, Croatia, Slavonia, Galicia and Lodomeria and Illyria; King of Jerusalem etc., Archduke of Austria; Grand Duke of Tuscany and Cracow, Duke of Lorraine, of Salzburg, Styria, Carinthia, Carniola and of Bukovina; Grand Prince of Transylvania; Margrave of Moravia; Duke of Upper and Lower Silesia, of Modena, Parma, Piacenza and Guastalla, of Oświęcim, Zator and Ćeszyn, Friuli, Ragusa and Zara; Princely Count of Habsburg and Tyrol, of Kyburg, Gorizia and Gradisca; Prince of Trent (Trento) and Brixen; Margrave of Upper and Lower Lusatia and in Istria; Count of Hohenems, Feldkirch, Bregenz, Sonnenberg, etc.; Lord of Trieste, of Cattaro (Kotor), and over the Windic march; Grand Voivode of the Voivodship of Serbia... 

from all these titles and history n riches..its obvious.. you are a pretty big deal... Its because of you and your family that many wars were started...Lost..And won...During your rule, famously the Great one.. The First World War... 

Now imagine you can see into the future (you are still Franz)... Fast forward few decades and...  Besides the fact that you have been dead for a while now...Your portraits were taken down n spat upon..  You and your family ended up widely hated.. actually despised by all... Also your family now has jack sh*t, their titles mean NOTHING and most of their estates n riches were taken away..They were kicked out of their country for a while... importantly nobody in your line shall also ever poke nose into politics ever again, for that right has been taken away from them too.. even from the fools that marry into your family and have no blood relation... So all that is there to your name now... is history.. that frowns upon you unkindly... and... these bohemian made canned goods  with your portrait and name on them... but unlike in the past, where your face was on everything because you were THE KAISER... here its just... to seem fancy..  The company isnt even owned by anyone of Habsburg family..Its  named like that just for the ghost of old glory.. a status of something better.. on relatively mediocre can of tuna. 

[histoireettralala]

Like his wife, Bessières was liked for his frankness and generosity. Remaining on good terms with all his colleagues, with the noticeable exception of Lannes, he was not a very great captain, but an intrepid and indefatigable horseman, impetuous and magnificent leader of men. He leaves behind the unanimous memory of an attractive man, a courageous soldier, an excellent husband and father, a reliable friend. After the Empire, in homage to his probity and his disinterestedness, the Emperor of Austria will give his young widow an annuity of 20,000 francs in compensation for the loss of her income from the Duchy of Istria.

This shows the notoriety and the reputation left by this true gentleman to whom Napoleon will pay homage at Saint Helena: "Bessières was, at the same time as a man of war, a gentleman and honor in person. He was of a cold bravery, calm in the midst of  fire. Unlike Murat, Bessières was a reserve officer, full of vigor, but prudent and circumspect.”

From his last exile, a grateful Napoleon undertakes to settle the debts of his companion who died poor. In his will, he will also bequeath 400,000 francs to the young Duke of Istria, as the son of his "best friend".

Jean-Claude Banc - Dictionnaire des maréchaux de Napoléon