Let’s have another look at Hortense’s Memoirs. If you want to read the book it is available for free at the side bar in English and French. Use the widget on the sidebar to translate the text below into pretty much any language.
Hortense shows the game playing that she had to deal with as an influential person. We also see how wars were constantly fomented around Napoleon by manipulators and how they would blacken his name. Hortense also shows another instance where Napoleon submits to her wishes.
Hortense’s memoirs continues:
Since the Emperor's departure my mother was living at the palace of the Elysée. It had been decreed that Frenchmen who received foreign crowns were not entitled to any further income from French sources.
Consequently, I had no allowance with which to pay the expenses of my household, and in order not to be obliged to ask anyone for money I dismissed all my servants. I planned to live at the Elysée with my mother. This decrease in my wealth was the least of my worries.
The Emperor heard what I had done and scolded me severely. He fixed my income at seven hundred thousand francs. As the war interfered with the prosperity of the Paris "luxury" trade the latter had decreased, and many work-men suffered from this depression of business.
The Emperor, who knew how to attend to minor matters as well as to conceive and execute great enterprises, had six thousand francs given me per month in order that I might help the unemployed. Cardinal Fesch, Madame Mere and the Princess Pauline received the same sum, which, together with what they gave personally, amounted to quite an important amount.
As for me I gave as much as I could to relieve the suffering of the poor. I admit the fact quite simply. There is no merit in this if one has a large fortune and a high rank. In such cases it is not necessary, in order to assure one's popularity, to announce the fact in the newspaper.
None of us considered that we deserved the slightest credit for acting as we did, and the Emperor would have been angry had we thought so. While the Emperor was busy with the war in Spain, Austria began to give him grounds for uneasiness and forced him to hurry back without having concluded the other war, which was growing more serious.
Monsieur de Talleyrand, who even after he had given up his post as Minister of Foreign Affairs continued to concern himself with what went on in Spain, had, so it was rumored, advised the policy that the Emperor followed at first.
As soon as he realized that things were not going well, he began to make fun of a campaign which was not as successful as the others had been. One day Madame de Remusat called on me.
She told me how much the reputation of Monsieur Talleyrand had suffered as far as the Emperor was concerned through people's repeating remarks he had never made and saying he had certain opinions which were not at all those he really held.
She wept freely when she informed me how seriously Monsieur de Talleyrand felt his disgrace and declared she had not the slightest idea who could have sought to harm a man like Monsieur de Talleyrand, who was absolutely devoted to the Emperor's interests.
She begged me to grant him an interview and to try to have the Emperor make peace with him. I remembered that his attentions had flattered me while we were at Mayence.
Since then I had met Monsieur de Talleyrand again, and he had not seemed to be aware of my presence. It was true, I had lost my son, and Talleyrand belonged to that class of people who disappear in the presence of misfortune.
Nevertheless, as one of the high dignitaries of the court he had called on me when my latest child had been born and in his carelessly polite manner had said "It depends solely upon your Majesty how many princes we are to have. Our future happiness is entirely in your hands."
Since then I had never even heard him spoken of and I confess I was delighted to have the opportunity of revenging myself for this apparent neglect by doing him a kindness.
Monsieur de Talleyrand arrived a few moments after Madame de Remusat had taken her departure. His attitude conveyed the hope that I would take his part, but he scarcely mentioned what he would like to have me do for him. He was no more cordial in his manner than usual, and I seemed the one who was asking a favor.
The tears of Madame de Remusat and her eagerness to defend her friend's interest contrasted strongly with the indifferent air of that haughty personage.
I promised to speak to the Emperor about him that same evening and I am under the impression that Talleyrand obtained my promise without having asked me for it.
Madame de Staël knew him well. Her portrait of him in the novel called "Delphine," under the name of Madame de Vernon, is a striking one and I have on several occasions noted how closely it resembles the original.
In accordance with my promise I went that same evening to the Tuileries and assumed a chagrined manner in announcing to the Emperor that I had seen a person who was deeply grieved at being in disgrace.
I spoke of that person's devotion to the Emperor and depicted his grief vividly; in fact, I lied so outrageously that I do not know how I managed to keep from smiling.
When at length I mentioned the name of Monsieur de Talleyrand the Emperor burst out laughing. "Oh, it's Talleyrand you've been talking about, is it?" he exclaimed.
“Do you mean to say he called on you this morning?"
“Yes, Sire, and he seemed greatly distressed."
“But does he think I don't know all the remarks he has been making? He has been trying to make himself popular at my expense. I won't interfere with him anymore. Let him keep on talking if he wants to."
“Sire, how can one repeat the remarks of a man who never says two words in succession? To make such statements is pure libel."
“My daughter, you do not know society. My information is accurate. Though he may not talk against me in front of you he makes up for it at two o'clock in the morning when he is with Madame de Laval and the rest of them.
As a matter of fact, I am not taking any steps against him. Only I wish that he would not interfere with my affairs."
I do not know whether in spite of what he said the Emperor was touched by my description of Monsieur de Talleyrand's grief or whether other persons intervened.
At any rate a reconciliation seemed to take place between the two men. To be sure Talleyrand was not again allowed to hold office, a fact which wounded him on account of his ambitious nature and which he never forgave.
Even his post of Lord High Chamberlain was taken from him and given to Monsieur de Montesquieu. This made people say that the Emperor was too much inclined to humiliate his courtiers and not enough inclined to punish them.
Madame de Talleyrand, whom I knew only slightly, called on me one morning while her husband was still high chamberlain.
“Knowing how kind you are," she said, "may I venture to ask you to include Monsieur de Talleyrand among the persons whom you invite to play whist with you at the Emperor's reception?
He, as Lord High Chamberlain, is the one who arranges your table, he comes and takes your commands as to who are to be invited, and it is disagreeable to him, as one of the principal figures at court, never to be chosen himself by any of the princesses."
I promised Madame de Talleyrand to do as she wished. It had simply never occurred to any of us to ask Monsieur de Talleyrand to play with us as we always believed he was too busy doing the honors.
The original French is available below:
