The Last Great Dance on Earth

by Sandra Gulland

  The Empress Marie-Louise, object of a deliberate plot on the part of the Austrians to keep her from joining Napoleon, succumbed enthusiastically to the sexual prowess of Count Neipperg, the chamberlain assigned to her for just that purpose. She became indifferent to the fate of her son by Napoleon. The boy—Napoleon II—died of tuberculosis at the age of twenty-two, without issue. (“My life would have been different,” he reportedly said, “had Josephine been my mother.”) Marie-Louise died in Vienna at the age of fifty-six.

  Hortense came to Napoleon’s assistance during the Hundred Days, and consequently was exiled after Waterloo. She settled in Switzerland, where she died at the age of fifty-four. Her eldest surviving son, Napoleon-Louis (Petit), died in battle at the age of twenty-seven. Louis-Napoleon (Oui-Oui) was elected to the presidency of France after the Revolution of 1848, becoming Emperor of the French under the name Napoleon III.

  Hortense’s lover, Charles Flahaut—believed to be Talleyrand’s illegitimate son—asked Hortense to marry him, but she refused because Louis was opposed to a divorce, and ultimately Flahaut married another woman. Their illegitimate son, Charles Auguste Demorny, was prominent in the government of Napoleon III, his unacknowledged half-brother.

  On condition that Eugène never take up arms again (which prevented him from coming to Napoleon’s aid during the Hundred Days), Eugène was offered the title Duke de Leuchtenberg by Tsar Alexandre. Eugène, Auguste and their children settled in Munich, living happily and quietly. He died of apoplexy at the age of forty-three.

  Of seven children, six grew to maturity. Each married into royalty:

  Josephine married the Crown Prince of Sweden (son of General Bernadotte and Eugénie-Désirée Clary—Joseph and Julie’s nephew), becoming Queen of Sweden.

  Eugénie married Prince Frederick Hohenzollern-Sigmaringen, a German prince.

  Augustus married Queen Maria II of Portugal (but died shortly after). Amélie married the Emperor of Brazil.

  Théodelinde married Guillaume de Württemberg, a German count. Maximilian married Grand Duchess Maria, daughter of the Tsar of Russia.

  Through Eugène, Josephine’s progeny live on in most of the royal houses of the world today.

  Note

  With the exception of the letter of March 12, 1810 (to which information has been added), Napoleon’s letters throughout are edited versions of those he actually wrote to Josephine. The police reports (pages 245–46) are likewise authentic, as are Hortense and Émilie’s account of the journey to Plombières (pages 48–49), Napoleon’s instructions to Eugène on how to rule Italy (pages 196–97), and Josephine’s letter to Napoleon (page 318). The translations are my own, with help from Bernard Turle.

  The illustration on page 62 of minuet notation is from The Art of Dancing by Kellom Tomlinson, published in 1735. The illustration on page 146 showing how to bow is from Chironomia; or A Treatise on Rhetorical Delivery by Gilbert Austin, originally published in 1806. The map on page 312 is based, with permission, on a map by Hyperhistory Online.

  Felected Bibliography

  Anyone who ventures into the Napoleonic Empire is quickly overwhelmed by the vast number of books that have been published on all aspects of the period. After over a decade of immersion in this moment in history, I still feel I have only scratched the surface. My bibliography now lists almost four hundred titles; I will note only a few.

  Researching this novel, I was highly entertained—”diverted” is a suitably eighteenth-century word—by the many memoirs of the period: those of Mademoiselle Avrillion, Fauvelet Bourrienne, Las Cases, Constant, Madame Ducrest, Baron Fain, Fouché, Madame Junot, Méneval, Madame Rémusat, and especially Hortense. In all cases it was necessary to judge the veracity and objectivity of the author (who was, in many cases, a ghost writer), making the search for “truth” rather like trying to find one’s way through the hall of mirrors at a fun fair.

  For information about Josephine, my mainstays have continued to be: Impératrice Joséphine, Correspondance, 1782–1814, compiled and edited by Maurice Catinat, Bernard Chevallier and Christophe Pincemaille (Paris: Histoire Payot, 1996) and L’impératrice Joséphine by Bernard Chevallier and Christophe Pincemaille (Paris: Presses de la Renaissance, 1988) as well as Ernest John Knapton’s Empress Josephine (Cambridge, Massachusetts: Harvard University Press, 1963). An award-winning biography was published as I was in the final stages of this work: Françoise Wagener’s L’Impératrice Joséphine (1763–1814) (Paris: Flammarion, 1999).

  It is difficult to select one particular book about Napoleon: there are so many. Although decidedly pro-Napoleon, Vincent Cronin’s Napoleon (London: Collins, 1971) remains one of the best, in my opinion. At the very least it is highly readable and captures the spirit of the time. Frank McLynn’s Napoleon: A Biography (London: Pimlico, 1998) is a recent and balanced account I consulted frequently.

  Other books of note: Joan Bear’s Caroline Murat (London: Collins, 1972); Jean-Paul Bertaud’s Bonaparte et le duc d’Enghien; le duel des deux Frances (Paris: Robert Laffont, 1972); Hubert Cole’s The Betrayers: Joachim and Caroline Murat (London: Eyre Methuen, 1972) and Fouché: The Unprincipled Patriot (London: Eyre & Spottiswoode, 1971); Emile Dard’s Napoleon and Talleyrand (London: Philip Allan & Co., Ltd., 1937); Walter Geer’s Napoleon and His Family: The Story of a Corsican Clan (London: George Allen & Unwin Ltd., 1928); Carola Oman’s Napoleon’s Viceroy: Eugène de Beauharnais (New York: Funk and Wagnall, 1966); Jean Tulard’s Fouché (Paris: Fayard, 1998) and Murat (Paris: Fayard, 1999).

  Three books in particular provided a wealth of wonderful detail: Bernard Chevallier’s award-winning L’art de vivre au temps de Joséphine (Paris: Flammarion, 1998); Maurice Guerrini’s Napoleon and Paris: Thirty Years of History (New York: Walker and Company, 1967); Frederic Masson’s Joséphine, Empress and Queen, (Paris and London: Goupil & Co., 1899).

  I am often asked to recommend a non-fiction book on the subject of Josephine and Napoleon. Evangeline Bruce’s Napoleon and Josephine: The Improbable Marriage (New York: Scribner, 1995) is excellent—a highly readable and generally accurate account of both personal and political worlds.

  In closing, a word of caution: this subject is addictive.

  Acknowledgments

  There have been times over the last three years when I felt that the spirits were putting roadblocks in my path, that there was a conspiracy to prevent this book from drawing to a close—a conspiracy in which I was, no doubt, an unconscious accomplice, for this hasn’t been an easy book to finish. It ends a decade of daily interaction with Josephine and her family, closes a curtain on a world that has become home to me.

  Perhaps the most difficult part of writing this novel was having to simplify a very complex narrative. Many delightful characters and fascinating stories had to be cut: readers familiar with the period will miss Fanny Beauharnais’s granddaughter Stéphanie (another spirited Stéphanie); the several Tascher boys sent from Martinique to take advantage of the caring protection of their Empress aunt; Talleyrand’s marriage to the delightfully clueless Madame Grand; General Bernadotte and his wife (Napoleon’s first love, Eugénie-Désirée Clary), who became King and Queen of Sweden; the colourful Spanish royalty, most especially the unforgettable Prince of Peace. Any of these people could easily be the subject of a novel.

  But most of all I have felt inadequate to the task of properly portraying Napoleon, his strengths and weaknesses, his vision and blindness, his heroic accomplishments and grievous failings. As well, the political picture—so vast and so complex—had to be simplified. Notably missing is the story of Toussaint’s defence of Saint-Domingue (Haiti today) and his tragic death in France, as well as the story of the arrest and imprisonment of the Pope. This novel represents only the tip of the iceberg.

  Of those individuals I have chosen to include, my apologies to their descendants if I have misrepresented them in any way. I hope my respect and love for them shows, even in their villainy.

  Researching this book in Europe, I owe spe
cial thanks to Yves Carlier, the curator of Fontainebleau, who took me on a tour behind the scenes of that amazing château, and the staff of the Archives Municipales in Évreux. And, as always, I owe a special thanks to Bernard Chevallier and Dr. Catinat at Malmaison. Dr. Catinat has happily answered my numerous questions for almost a decade. His knowledge and perception of “notre héroïne” have influenced me greatly.

  Special appreciation is due to all those on various Net history forums who took the time to give me specific information, notably: Bruno Nackaerts, Beryl Bernardi, Cori Hauer-Galambos, Yves Martin, and especially Tom Holmberg, who made perceptive and helpful suggestions after reading an early draft. Military historian Dr. Margaret Chrisawn not only answered my frequent questions, but combed the final text for errors (those errors that remain are entirely my responsibility). My debt to her since the inception of this trilogy is immense. Historian Dr. John McErlean kept me posted of new publications and developments; Irène Delage at Le Souvenir Napoléonien helped find obscure references; John Ballantrae provided tarot expertise; hemp activist Robert Anderman provided an interesting perspective regarding the Russian campaign; and Marshall Pynkoski and Jeannette Zingg of Opéra Atelier opened my eyes to the intricate world of eighteenth-century dance.

  The members of the Algonquin Book Club (Penney Carson-Mak, Shirley Felker, Bonnie Ference, Catherine Lee, Rhoda Levert, Joanne Paine and Cathleen Sullivan) gave an exceptionally helpful critique of an early draft. My hard-working readers proved invaluable yet again: Peggy Bridgland, Janet Calcaterra, Thea Caplan, Dorothy Goodman, Marnie MacKay, Jenifer McVaugh, Carmen Mullins, Fran Murphy, Robin Paige, Chris Pollock, and especially my parents, Robert and Sharon Zentner. Kristine Puopolo at Scribners made very helpful suggestions. The sensitive work of Fiona Foster, a talented editor, is apparent on every page. A “triple salvo of bravos” to Judy Holland, who read two drafts and each time gave me the benefit of her considerable expertise as an editor, writer and teacher.

  Thanks to Jan Whitford, whose early faith has at last been rewarded, and to my “home team” at HarperCollins Canada: Karen Hanson, Roy Nicol, Magda Nusink, Lorissa Sengara, Rebecca Vogan—and especially, especially, especially my editor and publisher, Iris Tupholme, who wept reading each draft.

  And, as always, I thank my husband Richard, who picked me up when I fell down, brushed me off and gently but firmly turned me back in the direction of the eighteenth century.

  Praise for

  The Last Great Dance on Earth

  “Gulland uses history to challenge many of the assumptions historians have made. … What remains indelible is the portrait of Josephine as a woman: elegant, curious and humane.”

  – The Globe and Mail

  “[A] novel that brings a shadowy historical figure to full, vibrant life.”

  – Ottawa Citizen

  “Gulland warns us in her bibliography that her subject is addictive. Too late.” – Toronto Star

  “Gulland weaves an intriguing and intimate love story around the vast sweep of history [in this] exceptional piece of historical fiction. [Her] meticulous research into the daily life in French Court … provides the stories with richness, depth and colour. [A] ‘can’t put it down’ book.” – The Hamilton Spectator

  “Gulland’s passion is obviously in scale with her larger-than-life subjects. [Her] fascination … with Josephine’s complexities and inconsistencies … brings her books alive… . A great story told well.”

  – Edmonton Journal

  “The Last Great Dance on Earth carries the reader along [through] the turmoil of the times… . The personal tragedy of Napoleon and Josephine … is genuinely moving.” – Quill & Quire

  “The human side of history comes alive in [this] study of Josephine and her famous husband.” – The Eganville Leader

  Also by Sandra Gulland

  THE MANY LIVES & SECRET SORROWS OF JOSEPHINE B.

  TALES OF PASSION, TALES OF WOE

  MISTRESS OF THE SUN

  Chronology

  March 9, 1800. Napoleon and Josephine’s fourth-year anniversary.

  March 29, 1800. Napoleon meets with Royalist agent Cadoudal.

  June 18, 1800. The Marquis de Beauharnais dies at Saint-Germain-en-Laye at the age of eighty-six.

  October 10, 1800. The Opéra plot: revolutionaries attempt to assassinate Napoleon at the Opéra.

  December 24, 1800. Royalist assassination attempt by exploding gunpowder nearly succeeds.

  February 9, 1801. Lunéville peace treaty is signed with Austria.

  July 7 to August 5, 1801. Josephine goes to the spa at Plombières to be treated for infertility.

  January 4, 1802. Hortense and Louis marry.

  March 27, 1802. Amiens peace treaty is signed with Britain.

  April 18, 1802. Concordat with the Church is celebrated.

  June 15 to July 12, 1802. Josephine returns to the spa at Plombières to undergo another treatment for infertility.

  August 2, 1802. Napoleon is declared First Consul for Life as the result of a popular vote. (Fouché opposed.)

  September 14, 1802. Fouché is demoted.

  October 10, 1802. Hortense and Louis’s first child is born, Napoleon-Charles.

  November 1 or 2, 1802. Pauline Bonaparte’s husband, Victor Leclerc, dies of yellow fever in Saint-Domingue (Haiti today).

  March 14, 1803. May 1803. Josephine’s Aunt Désirée dies. Josephine’s goddaughter, Stéphanie Tascher, fifteen, sails from Martinique on Le Dard.

  Shortly before May 18, 1803. Le Dard is captured by the British.

  May 18, 1803. England declares war on France.

  August 18, 1803. Stéphanie arrives in France by ship from England, after being held hostage.

  February 4, 1804. A Royalist plot to kidnap Napoleon is discovered.

  February 19, 1804. General Moreau is arrested.

  March 9, 1804. Georges Cadoudal is arrested.

  March 15, 1804. Duke d’Enghien is arrested in Germany.

  March 21, 1804. Duke d’Enghien is “tried” and executed.

  March 27, 1804. Fouché makes a motion in the Senate inviting Napoleon to make his glory “immortal.”

  April 7, 1804. Napoleon and Josephine ask Louis if they can adopt his son. (Refused.)

  May 18, 1804. A new constitution based on the Civil Code is proclaimed. Napoleon is proclaimed hereditary Emperor by a national plebiscite.

  June 28, 1804, Cadoudal is executed. General Moreau is banished.

  July 10, 1804. Fouché is reinstated as Minister of Police.

  July 30-September 11, 1804. Josephine goes to Aix-la-Chapelle to take a treatment for infertility.

  October 11, 1804. Hortense and Louis’s second son, Napoleon-Louis, is born in Paris.

  November 25, 1804. Napoleon receives Pope Pius VII at Fontainebleau.

  December 1, 1804. Josephine and Napoleon are married by the Church.

  December 2, 1804. Coronation at Notre-Dame. Napoleon and Josephine are crowned Emperor and Empress of the French.

  May 26, 1805. Napoleon is crowned King of Italy in Milan.

  June 7, 1805. Eugène is named Viceroy of the Kingdom of Italy.

  August 1 to August 30, 1805. Josephine goes to Plombières-les-Bains for yet another treatment for infertility.

  October 21, 1805. Battle of Trafalgar. The French fleet is defeated.

  December 2, 1805. Napoleon scores a decisive victory in the Battle of Austerlitz.

  January 14, 1806. Eugène marries Princess Auguste-Amélie of Bavaria in Munich.

  June 5, 1806. Louis and Hortense are formally proclaimed King and Queen of Holland.

  December 13, 1806. Caroline’s reader, Éléonore Denuelle, gives birth to a son, Léon, thought to be fathered by Napoleon (but possibly by Joachim Murat).

  May 4, 1807. Louis and Hortense’s eldest son, Napoleon-Charles, dies.

  July 27, 1807. Napoleon returns after an absence of ten months.

  April 21, 1808. Hortense and Louis’s third son, Louis-Napo
leon, is born prematurely.

  December 1808. Eugène intercepts a letter revealing a plot to put Joachim Murat on the throne should Napoleon be killed in battle. Napoleon is alerted.

  January 23, 1809. Napoleon returns to Paris from Spain and, shortly afterwards, Talleyrand is demoted.

  End of September 1809. Countess Marie Walewska becomes pregnant by Napoleon.

  November 30, 1809. Napoleon tells Josephine that they must divorce.

  December 15, 1809. Formal divorce ceremony.

  December 16, 1809. Josephine moves out of the Tuileries Palace.

  March 27, 1810. Napoleon and Austrian Archduchess Marie-Louise meet for the first time at Compiègne.

  March 29, 1810. Josephine moves to the Château de Navarre at Évreux.

  April 1, 1810. Napoleon and Marie-Louise are married at Saint-Cloud.

  May 4, 1810. Napoleon’s mistress, Countess Marie Walewska, gives birth to a son in Warsaw.

  March 20, 1811. Napoleon and Marie-Louise’s son, François-Charles-Joseph-Napoleon II, King of Rome, is born.

  September 15 or 16, 1811. Charles Flahaut and Hortense’s son is born.

  December 17, 1812. Le Moniteur prints the XXIX Bulletin, outlining the massive losses of the Grande Armée in Russia.

  August 10, 1813. Austria joins the Allies.

  August 26–27, 1813. Napoleon defeats the Allies at the Battle of Dresden.

  October 16–19, 1813. Battle of Leipzig. Napoleon’s army is defeated and reduced to 40,000.

  November 22, 1813. Speaking on behalf of the Allies, Auguste’s father, King Max of Bavaria, tries (unsuccessfully) to induce Eugène to abandon Napoleon.

  February 15, 1814. Joachim Murat makes a declaration of war against Eugène.

  March 28, 1814. Empress Marie-Louise and the Bonapartes make a decision to abandon Paris. Josephine gets an urgent message from Hortense: flee.