The Emperor is above the usual height by half a head; his figure is noble, although a little stiff: he has practised from his youth the Russian custom of girding the body above the loins to such a degree as to push up the stomach into the chest, which produces an unnatural swelling or extension about the ribs, that is as injurious to the health as it is ungraceful in appearance.
EMPEROR NICHOLAS. — HIS PERSON.193
This voluntary deformity destroys all freedom of movement, impairs the elegance of the shape, and imparts an air of constraint to the whole person. They say that when the Emperor loosens his dress, the viscera, suddenly giving way, are disturbed for a moment in their equilibrium, which produces an extraordinary prostration of strength. The bowels maybe displaced — they cannot be got rid of.
The Emperor has a Grecian profile — the forehead high, but receding; the nose straight, and perfectly formed; the mouth very finely cut; the face, which iu shape is rather a long oval, is noble ; the whole air military, and rather German than Slavonic. His carriage and his attitudes are naturally imposing. He expects always to be gazed at, and never for a moment forgets that he is so. It may even be said that he likes this homage of the eyes.
He passes the greater part of his existence in the open air, at reviews, or in rapid journeys. During summer the shade of his military hat draws across his forehead an oblique line, which marks the action of the sun upon the skin. This line produces a singular effect, but it is not disagreeable, as the cause is at once perceived.
In examining attentively the fine person of this individual on whose will hangs the fate of so many others, I have remarked with involuntary pity that he cannot smile at the same time with the eyes and the mouth, a want of harmony which denotes perpetual constraint; and which makes one remember with regret that easy natural grace, so conspicuous in the less regular but more agreeable countenance of his brother, the Emperor Alexander. The latter, always
VOL. I.K
194THE EMPRESS.
pleasing, had yet, at times, an assumed manner. The Emperor Nicholas is more sincere; but he has an habitual expression of severity, whieh sometimes gives the idea of harshness and inflexibility. If, however, he is less fascinating, he is more firm than his late brother: but then it must be added, that he has also a proportionately greater need of firmness. Graceful courtesy insures authority, by removing the desire of resistance. This judicious economy in the exercise of power is a secret of whieh the Emperor Nicholas is ignorant; he is one who desires to be obeyed, where others desire to be loved.
The figure of the Empress is very elegant; and, though she is extremely thin, I find an indefinable grace about her whole person. Her mien, far from being haughty, as 1 had been informed, is expressive of an habitual resignation. On entering the ehapel she was much affected, and I thought she was going to faint. A nervous convulsion agitated every feature of her face, and caused her head slightly to shake. Her soft blue, but rather sunken eyes, told of deep sufferings supported with angelic calmness. Her look, full of feeling, has the more power, from its seeming unconscious of possessing any. Faded before her time, and so weak, that it is said she cannot live long, her appearance gives the idea of a passing shadow, or of something that belongs no more to earth. She has never recovered from the anguish she had to undergo on the day of her accession to the throne, and conjugal duty has consumed the rest of her life.
She has given too many idols to Russia, — too many children to the Emperor. " Exhausting herself
CONSEQUENCES OF DESPOTISM.19õ
in Grand Dukes ! What a destiny !" said a great Polish lady, who did not think herself obliged to speak reverently with her lips of what she hated in her heart.
Every one sees the state of the Empress, but no one mentions it. The Emperor loves her: when ill in bed he attends her himself, watches by her bed-side, and prepares and administers her food or medicine. No sooner is she better, than he destroys her health with the excitement of fetes and journeys; but the moment that danger is again apprehended, he renounces all his projects. Of the precautions that might prevent evil he has a horror. Wife, children, servants, relations, favorites, — all in Russia must follow in the imperial vortex, and smile on till they die. All must force themselves to conform to the wish of the sovereign, which wish alone forms the destiny of all. The nearer any one is placed to the imperial sun, the more he is a slave to the glory attached to his situation. The Empress is dying under the weight of this slavery.
Every one here knows this, but no one speaks of it; for it is a general rule never to utter a word which can excite much interest: neither he who speaks, nor he who listens, must allow it to be seen that the subject of conversation merits continued attention, or awakens any warm feelings. All the resources of language are exhausted, in order to banish from discourse idea and sentiment, without, however, appearing to repress them, which would be gauche. The excessive constraint which results from this prodigious labour, — prodigious especially through the art with which it is concealed, — embitters the life of the Russians. К 2
EQUirAGES OF THE COURTIEHS.197
examining with curiosity all that presented itself in the way. The troops which I observed in the approaches to the palace were less magnificent than 1 had been led to expect, though the horses were certainly superb. The immense square which separates the dwelling of the sovereign from the rest of the city, was crossed in various directions by lines of carriages, servants in livery, and soldiers in a variety of uniforms. That of the cossacks is the most remarkable. Notwithstanding the concourse, the square, so vast is its extent, was not crowded.
In new states there is a void every where; but this is more especially the case when the government is absolute: it is the absence of liberty which creates solitude, and spreads sadness.
The equipages of the courtiers looked well, without bein"· really elegant. The carriages, badly painted, and still more badly varnished, are of a heavy make. They are drawn by four horses, whose traces are immoderately long. A coachman drives the wheel horses ; a little postillion, clothed in the long Persian robe similar to that of the coachman, rides on a fore horse, seated upon, or rather in, a hollow saddle, raised before and behind, and stuffed like a pillow. This child, named, I believe, after the German the Vorreitcr*, and in Russia the Faleiter, is always perched upon the right, or off-side leader ; the contrary custom prevails in all other countries, where the postillion is mounted on the left, in order to have the rio·ht hand free to guide his other horse. The spirit and power of the Russian horses, which have all
* The fore rider. К 3
198AN ACCIDENT.
some blood, if all have not beauty, the dexterity of the coachmen, and the richness of their dress, greatly set off the carriages, and produce altgether an effect which, if not so elegant, is more striking and splendid than that of the equipages of the other courts of Europe.
I was occupied with a crowd of reflections which the novelty of the objects around me suggested, when my carriage stopped under a grand peristyle, where I descended among a crowd of gilded courtiers, who were attended by vassals as barbaric in appearance as in reality. The costume of the servants is almost as brilliant as that of their masters. The Russians have a great taste for splendour, and in court ceremonies this taste is more especially displayed.
In descending from the carriage rather hastily, lest I should be separated from the persons under whose guidance T had placed myself, my foot struck with some force against the curb stone, which had caught my spur. At the moment I paid little attention to the circumstance; but great was my distress when immediately afterwards I perceived that the spur had come off, and, what was still worse, that it had carried with it the heel of the boot also. Having to appear in this dilapidated state, for the first time, before a man said to be as precise as he is great and powerful, seemed to me a real misfortune. The Russians are prone to ridicule; and the idea of affording them a subject for laughter at my first presentation was peculiarly unpleasant.
&n
bsp; What was to be done? To return under the peristyle to search for the remnant of my boot was quite useless. To quit the French ambassador and
the author's debut at court. 199
return home would, in itself, be the way to create a scene. On the other hand, to show myself as I was, would ruin me in the estimation of the Emperor and his courtiers ; and I have no philosophy against ridicule to which I voluntarily expose myself. The troubles that pleasure draws one into at a thousand leagues from home, appear to me insupportable. It was so easy not to go at all, that to go awkwardly were unpardonable. I might hope to conceal myself in the crowd; but, I repeat, there never is a crowd in Russia; and least of all upon a staircase like that of the new winter palace, which resembles some decoration in the opera of Gustavus. This palace is, I believe, the largest and most magnificent of all existing royal or imperial residences.
I felt my natural timidity increase with the confusion which this ludicrous accident produced, until, at length, fear itself supplied me with courage, and I began to limp as lightly as I could across the immense saloons and stately galleries, the length and strong light of which I inwardly cursed. The Russians are cool, quick-sighted quizzes, possessing, like all the ambitious, little delicacy of feeling. They are, besides, mistrustful of strangers, whose judgment they fear, because they believe we have but little good feeling towards them. This prejudice renders them censorious and secretly caustic, although outwardly they appear hospitable and polite.
I reached, at length, but not without difficulty, the further end of the imperial chapel. There all was forgotten, even myself and my foolish embarrassment; indeed, in this place the crowd was more dense, and no one could see what was wanting to my equipment. к 4
200FORMS OF THE GREEK CHURCH.
The novelty of the spectacle that awaited me restored my coolness and self-possession. I Unshed for the vexation which my vanity as a disconcerted courtier had produced, and with the resumption of my part as simple traveller in the scene, recovered the composure of a philosophic observer.
One word more upon my costume. It had been the subject of grave consultation : some of the young people attached to the French legation had advised the habit of the national guard. I feared, however, that this uniform would displease the Emperor, and decided upon that of a staff officer, with the epaulettes of a lieutenant-colonel, which are those of my rank.
I had been warned that the dress would appear new, and that it would become, on the part of the princes of the imperial family, and of the emperor himself, the subject of numerous questions which might embarrass me. Hitherto, however, none have had time to occupy themselves with so small an affair.
The Greek marriage rites are long and imposing. Every thing is symbolical in the Eastern church. It seemed to me that the splendours of religion shed a lustre over the solemnities of the court.
The Avails and the roof of the chapel, the habiliments of the priests and of their attendants, all glittered with gold and jewels. There are riches enough here to astonish the least poetical imagination. The spectacle vies with the most fanciful description in the Arabian Nights; it is like the poetry of Lalla Rookh, or the Marvellous Lamp, — that Oriental poetry in which sensation prevails over sentiment and thought.
ENTREE OF THE IMPERIAL FAMILY. 201
The imperial chapel is not of large dimensions. It was filled with the representatives of all the sovereigns of Europe, and almost of Asia; by strangers like myself, admitted in the suite of the diplomatic corps ; by the wives of the ambassadors, and by the great officers of the court. A balustrade separated us from the circular enclosure, within which the altar was raised. This altar is like a low square table. Places in the choir were reserved for the imperial family: at the moment of our arrival they were vacant.
I have seen few things that could compare with the magnificence and solemnity which attended the entrance of the Emperor into this chapel, blazing with gold and jewels. He appeared, advancing with the Empress, and followed by the court retinue. All eyes were immediately fixed upon him, and his family, among whom the betrothed pair shone conspicuously. A marriage of inclination celebrated in broidered habiliments, and in a place so pompous, was a novelty which crowned the interest of the scene. This was repeated by every one around me; for my own part I cannot give credit to the marvel, nor can I avoid seeing a politic motive in all that is said and done here. The Emperor perhaps deceives himself, and believes that he is performing acts of paternal tenderness, while in the bottom of his heart he may be secretly influenced in his choice by the hope of personal advantage.
It is with ambition as with avarice; misers always calculate, not excepting even the moment when they believe they are yielding to disinterested sentiments.
к 5
202ATTENDANCE AT COURT.
Although the court was numerous, and the chapel small, there was no confusion. I stood in the midst of the corps diplomatique, near the balustrade which separated us from the sanctuary. We were not so crowded, as to be unable to distinguish the features and movements of each of the personages, whom duty or curiosity had there brought together. No disorder interrupted the respectful silence that was maintained throughout the assembly. A brilliant sun illuminated the interior of the chapel, where the temperature had, I understood, risen to thirty degrees.* ЛУе observed in the suite of the Emperor, habited in a long robe of gold tissue, and a pointed bonnet, likewise adorned with gold embroidery, a Tartar Khan, who is half tributary, and half independent of Russia. This petty sovereign had come to pray the Emperor of all the Russians to admit among his pages a son, twelve years old, whom he had brought to Petersburg, hoping thus to secure for the child a suitable destiny. The presence of this declining power, served as a contrast to that of the successful monarch, and reminded me of the triumphal pomps of Rome.
The first ladies of the Russian court, and the wives of the ambassadors of the other courts, among whom I ì`ecognised Mademoiselle Sontag, now Countess de Rossi, graced with their presence the circumference of the chapel. At the lower end, which terminated in a brilliant, painted rotunda, were ranged the whole of the imperial family. The gilded ceiling, reflecting the ardent rays of the sun, formed a species of crown around the heads of the sovereigns and their children.
* Of Reaumur. —Trans.
ETIQUETTE IN CHAPEL.203
The attire and diamonds of the ladies shone with a magic splendour in the midst of all the treasures of xVsia, Avhich beamed upon the Avails of the sanctuary. where royal magnificence seemed to challenge the majesty of the God whom it honoured without forgetting its own.
All this gorgeous display is wonderful, especially to us, if we recall the time, not distant, when the marriage of the daughter of a Czar would have been scarcely heard of in Europe, and when Peter I. declared, that he had a right to leave his crown to whomsoever he pleased. How great a progress for so short a period !
When Ave reflect on the diplomatic and other conquests of this power, which not long since was considered as of but little importance in the civilised world, we are led to ask ourselves if that which Ave see is not a dream. The Emperor himself appeared to me not much accustomed to Avhat Avas passing before him; for he was continually leaving his prayers, and slipping from one side to the other, in order to remedy the omissions of etiquette among his children, or the clergy. This proves, that in Russia, even the court has not yet finished its education. His son-in-laAv was not placed quite conveniently, Avhereupon he made him shift his position by about íavo feet. The Grand Duchess, the priests themselves, and all the great functionaries of the court seemed to be governed bv his minute but supreme directions. I felt that it Avould have been more dignified to leave things as they Avere, and I could have wished that Avhen once in the chapel, God only had been thought of, and each man had been left to acquit himself of his func-K 6
204M. DE PAIILEX.
tions, without his master so scrupulously rectifying each little fault of religious discipline, or of court ceremonial: but in th
is singular country the absence of liberty is seen every whçre : it is found even at the foot of the altar. Here the spirit of Peter the Great governs the minds of all.
During the mass at a Greek marriage, there is a moment when the betrothed drink together out of the same cup. Afterwards, accompanied by the officiating priest, they pass three times round the altar, hand in hand, to signify the conjugal union, and the fidelity which should attend their walk through life. All these acts are the more imposing, as they recall to mind the customs of the primitive church.
These ceremonies being ended, a crown was next held for a considerable time over the head of each of the newly-married pair; the crown of the Grand Duchess, by her brother the hereditary Grand Duke, the position of which the Emperor himself (once more leaving his prayer desk) took care to adjust, with a mixture of good nature and of minute attention that would be difficult to describe.
The crown of the Duke of Leuchtenberg was held by the Count de Pahlen, Russian ambassador at Paris, and son of the too celebrated and too zealous friend of Alexander. This recollection banished from the conversation, and perhaps from the thoughts, of the Russians of these days, did not cease to occupy my mind the whole time that the Count de Pahlen, with the noble simplicity which is natural to him, was engaged in the performance of an act envied, doubtless, by all who aspired to court favour. That act was an invocation of the protection of heaven,
Russia in 1839 -Empire of the Czar: A Journey Through Eternal Russia Page 20
