Just when the Marquis of Treville was ambitious and wanted to do something great in Algeria, Aiglon, who was far away in Fontainebleau, was worried about another place thousands of miles away.
The turmoil in France in 1830 and the ensuing crisis in Belgium gradually subsided due to a series of dramatic events such as the return of the Roman king, the restoration of the empire, and private compromises reached between Britain and France.
Now, people are waiting for the official "opening" of the new Kingdom of Belgium, and then the marriage of Prince Ferdinand and Princess Theodlande de Beauharnais of the Saxe-Coburg-Gotha family will pave the way for this new era.
The vigorous turmoil officially came to an end.
However, in the chaotic European continent, there is never a shortage of firewood. Even though the turmoil in Western Europe began to subside, the turmoil in Eastern Europe suddenly started to burn.
The eye of this turmoil is Poland.
In 1807, after a series of battles, Emperor Napoleon and the Tsar finally reached a compromise at Tilsit and began to carve up Eastern Europe. Prussia, the Tsar's former ally, became the biggest loser. It had annexed the Polish territory it had acquired through three carve-ups (
Including Poznan and Warsaw), Napoleon was forced to spit them out, and Napoleon established the Grand Duchy of Warsaw on the basis of this territory. The nominal head of the duchy was the Emperor's loyal follower, King Friedrich Augustus of Saxony.
King Te I also served as Grand Duke, and the government was led by the loyal Marshal Poniatowski. Poland, which had been partitioned and subjugated, finally got a chance to recover.
Emperor Napoleon's move was certainly not out of love for the Polish people (although he did find a caring mistress here). His purpose was to foster a loyal vassal in the vast Eastern Europe to serve the interests of the empire.
Vanguard.
His goal was indeed achieved, and the Grand Duchy of Warsaw did become a loyal servant of the emperor from then on, and also followed the emperor to attack Russia (this was what the Poles wanted to do most).
However, the Poles' luck ended here. Emperor Napoleon's Russian army was almost completely destroyed, and the Grand Duchy of Warsaw fell again under the iron heel of the Russian counterattack.
Theoretically speaking, since this was Prussia's former territory, the Tsar should return it after "liberation". However, since ancient times, how can any Russian be willing to spit out the meat they have eaten? At the Vienna Peace Conference, the Tsar used a tough policy to
Attitude swallowed up the Polish territory he occupied and gave only a small part of the land to Prussia.
The Tsar established a "Kingdom of Poland" on the newly occupied Polish territory, with himself as the head of state and his second brother, Grand Duke Constantine, as the governor. At the same time, he implemented a very strict ruling policy and abolished freedom of the press.
Gatherings were banned and Poland was forced to submit to Petersburg's rule.
In 1825, Tsar Alexander died. Grand Duke Constantine gave up his inheritance rights due to intermarriage between nobles and common people, so his third brother Nicholas succeeded as Tsar. Although bloody episodes such as the Decembrist turmoil broke out during this period, after all, he
After some suppression, he still secured his throne.
Compared with his brother, the new Tsar Nicholas was more radical and forceful. He wanted to implement more severe policies in the Kingdom of Poland and deprive it of its last remaining autonomy rights, which further increased the resistance of the Poles.
mood.
Dissatisfaction and anger are brewing in invisible places, and if given a chance, they will erupt from the ground like lava.
In 1830, such an opportunity appeared.
At the beginning of this year, the turmoil in France suddenly broke out. The Bourbon royal family, which was sent back by foreign bayonets in 1815, had to flee in panic again. The series of dramatic events in which the Roman king returned to Paris made the Polish people who had been silent for a long time return to Paris.
The hope of regaining freedom and independence was rekindled.
Therefore, on the evening of November 29, 1830, some pro-independence Polish troops and armed people rushed to the Belvedere Palace, the official residence of Archduke Constantine, who served as governor, and officially declared the outbreak of the uprising.
Although Archduke Constantine ran away early when he saw the situation was bad, the rebels still successfully occupied the arsenal and a series of important government agencies, and distributed tens of thousands of rifles to the citizens. In just one night, the rebels
They occupied Warsaw.
Then on December 3, 1830, the Provisional Government of Poland was established and Joseph Hwopicki, a Polish general who had served Napoleon, was appointed as Commander-in-Chief of the Polish Army.
However, although the uprising quickly swept across Poland and developed in full swing, the upper class elites in Poland had great doubts about this uprising. They believed that compared with the powerful strength of the Russian Empire, the Poles were now engaged in an armed uprising.
It is not wise, it is extremely prone to bloody suppression, and may even destroy the little political rights that the Poles currently have.
Commander-in-Chief Joseph Hvopitsky himself believed that the situation was very desperate and that this uprising was destined to end in tragedy, so he insisted on negotiating with the Tsar to try to exchange for a better "submission" condition.
Unfortunately, the furious Tsar did not intend to forgive the rebellious Poles easily. While urgently mobilizing the army in Russia, he ordered the Poles to immediately lay down their weapons and surrender unconditionally.
After some pulling and pulling, the negotiations between the Polish Provisional Government and the Tsar broke down. Finally, on January 25, 1831, after two months of indecision, the Polish Parliament announced the deposed Nicholas under the pressure of the revolutionary masses.
I, and at the same time officially became independent from Russia - and this also caused the two parties' positions to lose all room for maneuver, and they could only rely on force to determine the final outcome.
The Tsar ordered the army to march into Poland to suppress the rebellion, and Jan Skrzynecki was appointed as the new commander-in-chief by the parliament and led the Polish army to resist.
At the beginning, everyone felt that the suffocatingly powerful Tsarist Russia would easily crush the Polish resistance. However, due to the vast territory of the Russian army, slow mobilization, and the lack of combat readiness of the peacetime army, coupled with the
The Polish rebels, who were not willing to be slaves to their country anymore, put up a resolute resistance. Therefore, although the Russian army had the advantage in strength and weapons, the "counter-insurgency war" did not go very smoothly and suffered repeated setbacks.
Especially in the Battle of Kaushen on April 2, 1831, the Russian vanguard suffered a major defeat, with thousands of casualties and prisoners captured, which shocked the surrounding powers who were secretly observing.
This was in the spring of 1831. When the news reached France, French public opinion suddenly became excited. The newspapers vividly described the heroic feats of the Polish people and the poor performance of the Russian army. Some people even clamored to
The French Empire sent troops to aid Poland and teach the Tsar a lesson.
The disastrous defeat in the Russian conquest in 1812 nearly wiped out Napoleon's army. As a result, the Czar has almost become the most hated existence by the French people. Seeing the Russians being defeated will naturally make the French excited.
At the moment, Poland's War of Independence is not only causing turbulence in public opinion, but also undercurrents below the surface - the Poles know that they are facing an extremely difficult struggle. Although they have now achieved a series of small victories, they are still facing a series of small victories.
For the huge Russian giant bear, this loss was simply negligible, and it could not even make the Tsar frown.
Obviously, Poland will face more terrifying military pressure next, and in order to resist this pressure, "seeking international assistance" will naturally become an option that must be chosen.
Before declaring independence, the Polish Parliament had issued a declaration explaining to European countries that the reason for the outbreak of the uprising was the unbearable brutal rule of the Tsar, hoping to gain international sympathy.
The Poles placed their best hope for assistance on the newly restored Aiglon and the French Empire.
Wasn't the Bonaparte family the benefactors of Poland? Didn't Emperor Napoleon help defeat the Tsar and establish the Grand Duchy of Warsaw? Why can't history repeat itself?
Of course, in fact, not so many Poles believe that history is really going to repeat itself. However, at this moment, they are like drowning people desperately trying to grab any life-saving straw, desperately trying to convince themselves that France will reach out.
A helping hand - after all, this seems to be the only hope.
Since the war of independence began, a large number of Polish refugees have poured into France, which they consider to be the most friendly and tolerant to them. While telling their stories, they denounced the Tsar's oppression of Poland and hoped to love freedom. They had just driven away the tyrant.
The French people can help the Polish people also gain freedom.
And their clamor has indeed won the sympathy of some public opinion. Many people advocated the great cause of helping the Polish people and at the same time fighting the Russians.
However, in the face of the fierce public opinion, the imperial government headed by Talleyrand chose to deal with it coldly and did not make any statement. It simply pretended that the incident had not happened and just waited to see what happened. It had no intention of directly intervening.
As the war in Poland intensified and public opinion gradually became more enthusiastic, it was no longer enough to just "wait and see what happens". As the monarch of the empire, now was the time for Aigron to make a decision himself.
During this period of watching indifferently, Aigron has had several secret discussions with his prime minister, Prince Talleyrand, the former foreign minister of the empire, Duke Bassano, and other close circles, and has reached a tacit understanding. Now, he is the one who has officially made it clear
It's time to show your attitude.
On this day, Count Alexander Walewski was summoned to the Palace of Fontainebleau by his "brother".
Since he successfully completed the mission of visiting England with Duke Bassano, the young Count Alexander Valewski began to become famous in the imperial political circles.
Although no one talks about his identity publicly, everyone knows that he is the illegitimate son of Emperor Napoleon, and this "blood capital" is destined to make a big difference in the political arena of the empire.
Therefore, the door to the social world quickly opened to the young earl. Because of his prominent status and handsome appearance, he also became the object of warm affection for ladies and ladies.
However, the young earl did not indulge in temporary pleasure like most of his peers. As an ambitious young man who wanted to make a big difference, he did not indulge too much in the pleasures and pleasures he could easily obtain.
, but continued the original low-key pace of life, always ready to take on more important responsibilities assigned to him by the empire.
And today, he was specially summoned to Fontainebleau by his emperor brother, which was obviously a sign that he was about to take on a heavy responsibility.
He himself could probably guess what it was for.
Poland... Theoretically, he is indeed a Pole.
Although he did grow up in Poland, his nominal father was not very kind to him, and because he did not want to perform military service for the Tsar (as a Polish nobleman, he had this obligation), he came from Poland as a boy.
He fled and eventually ended up in France.
How should you view that "homeland"?
With a heavy heart, he looked at this beautiful palace.
The war surrounding Poland has not affected the clear water and sky here at all, which is exquisite and quiet, making people feel comfortable.
This is the "foundation" of the Bonaparte family, and this is the end of his career.
Soon, he was brought to Aigron.
Facing his illegitimate "brother", Aigron did not act like an emperor, but waved his hand to him casually, "Long time no see, Mr. Earl, how are you doing recently?"
"Thanks to your blessing, Your Majesty, I am very well now." Alexander saluted Aigron respectfully, "I wish you all the best."
"Since everything is fine with you, I'm relieved -" Aigron smiled, "but your hometown seems to be not so good right now -"
"Not only is it bad, it is being ravaged now, Your Majesty." Alexander also smiled bitterly, "In fact, several of my relatives and friends came to France, and they told me some recent developments, which makes people worried.
and pain.”
"The world is always not peaceful -" Aigron shrugged slightly, looking a little regretful, "I deeply regret what happened to the Polish people, especially since they have placed so many good wishes on me.
That makes me deeply regretful.”
Then, Aigron changed the topic and looked at the other party again, "You should also know that there are many people clamoring for me to intervene and help the Poles. So what do you think?"
Aiglon's question seemed casual, but Alexander suddenly felt awe in his heart.
He knew that in front of His Majesty, his own thoughts did not matter. The key was to cater to his thoughts.
Fortunately, he was not unprepared for this issue. After all, he was favored by Prince Talleyrand and had many suggestions in private, so he had a general understanding of the prince and His Majesty's thoughts.
Therefore, it was not difficult for him to give an answer.
"Your Majesty, I think you should not be swayed by public opinion, but should act prudently. Objectively, we cannot assist Poland, and from the international environment, we should not assist it." Facing Aiglon, the young earl
He talked eloquently, "It is too far away from us. If we don't deal with Germany, we can't really help it at all; and if we start another dispute with the German states for Poland, it will be too much. Moreover, at the moment, it is not worth the gain.
It is a good thing that the Tsar is distracted by the war in Poland, and we should not draw all his anger onto ourselves."
What the count said is actually true.
Why has it been that in the nearly one year since Aiglon returned to France, the Tsar, who clearly has a serious feud with the Bonaparte family, has almost just looked on with a cold eye as if the matter has "nothing to do with him"?
Because in the past year, all the Tsar's energy has been diverted to Poland. He has no intention or interest to deal with the boys of the Bonaparte family and Paris thousands of miles away. As long as Aigron does not provoke him,
He couldn't do anything to Aiglon in the short term.
The count's indifferent and detached attitude toward his "hometown" made Aigron half-admired and half-momented.
"You are indeed a born diplomat, sir."
"That's because my motherland is here, Your Majesty, and I can only consider issues based on its interests." Alexander bowed slightly, waiting for further instructions from His Majesty.