Latest / The French Revolution Volume 1 - The Bastille / 048 - Book 7 Chapter 9 Lafayette

Transcript

048 - Book 7 Chapter 9 Lafayette · The French Revolution Volume 1 - The Bastille

• 0:00
  Speaker 1: The French Revolution, A history by Thomas Carlyle, Volume one,
• 0:06
  Speaker 1: Book seven, The Insurrection of Women, Chapter nine, Lafayette. This
• 0:11
  Speaker 1: LibriVox recording is in the public domain. Read by Peter Dan,
• 0:15
  Speaker 1: Book seven, Chapter nine Lafayette. Towards midnight, lights flare on
• 0:22
  Speaker 1: the hill, Lafayette's lights. The roll of his drums comes
• 0:26
  Speaker 1: up the Avenue de Versailles. With peace or with war,
• 0:31
  Speaker 1: Patient's friends, with neither Lafayette is come, but not yet
• 0:35
  Speaker 1: the catastrophe he has halted and harangued so often on
• 0:40
  Speaker 1: the march, spent nine hours on four leagues of road
• 0:44
  Speaker 1: at Montroy, close on Versailles. The whole host had to pause, and,
• 0:48
  Speaker 1: with uplifted right hand, in the murk of night, to
• 0:51
  Speaker 1: these pouring skies, swear solemnly to respect the King's dwelling,
• 0:56
  Speaker 1: to be faithful to King and National Assembly. Rage is
• 1:01
  Speaker 1: driven down out of sight by the laggard march, the
• 1:04
  Speaker 1: thirst of vengeance slaked in weariness and soaking clothes. Flander
• 1:09
  Speaker 1: is again drawn out under arms. But Flander, grown so patriotic,
• 1:13
  Speaker 1: now needs no exterminating. The way worn battalions halt in
• 1:18
  Speaker 1: the avenue they have for the present no wish so
• 1:21
  Speaker 1: pressing as that of shelter and rest. Anxious sits President
• 1:27
  Speaker 1: Mounier anxious the chateau. There is a message coming from
• 1:31
  Speaker 1: the chateau that Monsieur Mounier would please return thither with
• 1:35
  Speaker 1: a fresh deputation swiftly, and so at least unite our
• 1:39
  Speaker 1: two anxieties. Anxious Mounier does of himself send meanwhile to
• 1:44
  Speaker 1: apprize the General that his majesty has been so gracious
• 1:47
  Speaker 1: as to grant us the acceptance pure and simple. The General,
• 1:52
  Speaker 1: with a small advance column, makes answer in passing, speaks
• 1:55
  Speaker 1: vaguely some smooth words to the National President, glances only
• 2:00
  Speaker 1: with the eye at that so mixediform National Assembly, then
• 2:04
  Speaker 1: fares forward towards the chateau. There are with him two
• 2:08
  Speaker 1: Paris municipals. They were chosen from the three hundred for
• 2:12
  Speaker 1: that errand he gets admittance through the locked and padlocked grates,
• 2:17
  Speaker 1: through sentries, and ushes to the royal halls. The court
• 2:22
  Speaker 1: male and female crowds on his passage to read their
• 2:25
  Speaker 1: doom on his face, which exhibits, say historians, a mixture
• 2:30
  Speaker 1: of sorrow, of fervor, of valor singular. To behold the
• 2:36
  Speaker 1: king with Monsieur, with ministers and marshals, is waiting to
• 2:40
  Speaker 1: receive him. He is come, in his high flown, chivalrous way,
• 2:45
  Speaker 1: to offer his head for the safety of his majesties.
• 2:49
  Speaker 1: The two municipals state the wish of Paris four things
• 2:52
  Speaker 1: of quite pacific tenor. First, that the honor of guarding
• 2:57
  Speaker 1: his sacred person be conferred on Patria national guards, say
• 3:02
  Speaker 1: the Center Grenadiers, who as guard fronseies were wont to
• 3:05
  Speaker 1: have that privilege. Second, that provisions be got, if possible. Third,
• 3:12
  Speaker 1: that the prisons, all crowded with political delinquents, may have
• 3:16
  Speaker 1: judges sent them. Fourth, that it would please his Majesty
• 3:20
  Speaker 1: to come and live in Paris. To all which four wishes,
• 3:26
  Speaker 1: except the fourth, his Majesty answers readily yes, or indeed
• 3:30
  Speaker 1: may almost say that he has already answered it. To
• 3:33
  Speaker 1: the fourth, he can answer only yes or no. Would
• 3:37
  Speaker 1: so gladly answer yes and no. But in any case
• 3:41
  Speaker 1: are not their dispositions, Thank Heaven, so entirely pacific. There
• 3:45
  Speaker 1: is time for deliberation. The brunt of the danger seems past.
• 3:51
  Speaker 1: Lafayette and d'estang settle. The watchers sent to grenadiers are
• 3:55
  Speaker 1: to take the guard room they of old occupied as
• 3:58
  Speaker 1: guard Fronseilles. For in the Guarde de corps, its late
• 4:02
  Speaker 1: ill advised occupants are gone, mostly to Rumbouillet. That is
• 4:06
  Speaker 1: the order of this night sufficient for the Knight is
• 4:09
  Speaker 1: the evil thereof whereupon Lafayette and the two municipals with
• 4:13
  Speaker 1: high flown chivalry take their leave. So brief has the
• 4:19
  Speaker 1: interview been. Moonier and his deputation were not yet got up,
• 4:23
  Speaker 1: so brief and satisfactory. A stone is rolled from every
• 4:27
  Speaker 1: heart the fair palace. Dames publicly declare that this Lafayette,
• 4:32
  Speaker 1: detestable though he be, is their savior. For ones, even
• 4:36
  Speaker 1: the ancient for Negress tunt admitted the King's aunt's ancient
• 4:41
  Speaker 1: gray and sisterhood known to us of old. Queen Marie
• 4:45
  Speaker 1: Antoinette has been heard often say the like, she alone,
• 4:49
  Speaker 1: among all women and all men, wore a face of courage,
• 4:52
  Speaker 1: of lofty, calmness and resolve. This day she alone saw
• 4:57
  Speaker 1: clearly what she meant to do, and to raises daughter
• 5:00
  Speaker 1: dares do what she means. Were all France threatening her
• 5:03
  Speaker 1: abide where her children are, where her husband is. Towards
• 5:09
  Speaker 1: three in the morning, all things are settled. The watchers
• 5:12
  Speaker 1: set the Santa Grenadiers put into their old guard room
• 5:15
  Speaker 1: and harangue. The Swiss and few remaining bodyguards harangue the
• 5:20
  Speaker 1: way worn Paris battalions consigned to the hospitality of Versailles
• 5:25
  Speaker 1: lie dormant in spare beds, spare barracks, coffee houses, empty churches.
• 5:30
  Speaker 1: A troop of them on their way to the Church
• 5:32
  Speaker 1: of Saint Louis. Awoke poor Weber, dreaming troublous in the
• 5:35
  Speaker 1: Rue Satturi. Weber has had his waistcoat pocket full of
• 5:40
  Speaker 1: balls all day two hundred balls and two pairs of
• 5:43
  Speaker 1: powder for waistcoats were waistcoats then and had flaps down
• 5:47
  Speaker 1: to mid thigh. So many balls he has had all day,
• 5:51
  Speaker 1: but no opportunity of using them. He turns over now
• 5:54
  Speaker 1: execrating disloyal bandits, swears a prayer or two, and straight
• 5:59
  Speaker 1: to sleep again. Finally, the National Assembly is harangued, which, thereupon,
• 6:05
  Speaker 1: on motion of mirror Beeau, discontinues the penal code and
• 6:09
  Speaker 1: dismisses for this night mean Adism Sanskelottism has cowered into
• 6:15
  Speaker 1: guard houses barracks of flander to the light of cheerful fire,
• 6:19
  Speaker 1: failing that to churches, office houses, sentry boxes, wheesoever wretchedness
• 6:24
  Speaker 1: can find a lair. The troublous day has brawled itself
• 6:29
  Speaker 1: to rest. No lives yet lost, but that of one
• 6:32
  Speaker 1: war horse. Insurrectionary chaos lies slumbering round the palace like
• 6:37
  Speaker 1: ocean round a diving bell, no crevice yet disclosing itself.
• 6:44
  Speaker 1: Deep sleep has fallen promiscuously on the high and on
• 6:48
  Speaker 1: the low, suspending most things, even wrath and famine. Darkness
• 6:53
  Speaker 1: covers the earth, But far on the northeast, Paris flings
• 6:57
  Speaker 1: up her great yellow gleam far into the wet black night.
• 7:02
  Speaker 1: For all is illuminated there as in the old July nights,
• 7:06
  Speaker 1: the streets deserted for alarm of war, the municipals, all
• 7:09
  Speaker 1: wakeful patrols hailing with their horse hugoes. There as we
• 7:14
  Speaker 1: discover our poor, slim luison Chabrat, her poor nerves, all fluttered,
• 7:19
  Speaker 1: is arriving about this very hour. There Ashamaya will arrive
• 7:24
  Speaker 1: about an hour Hence, towards four in the morning, they
• 7:28
  Speaker 1: report successively to a wakeful hotel, the Viya. What comfort
• 7:32
  Speaker 1: they can report, which again, with early dawn, large comfortable
• 7:36
  Speaker 1: placards shall impart to all men. Lafayette in the Hotel
• 7:41
  Speaker 1: de Noais, not far from the chateau, having now finished haranguing,
• 7:45
  Speaker 1: sits with his officers, consulting at five o'clock. The unanimous
• 7:50
  Speaker 1: best council is that a man so tossed and toiled
• 7:53
  Speaker 1: for twenty four hours and more, fling himself on a
• 7:56
  Speaker 1: bed and seek some rest. Thus then has ended the
• 8:01
  Speaker 1: first act of the insurrection of women. How will it
• 8:05
  Speaker 1: turn on the morrow? The morrow, as always is with
• 8:09
  Speaker 1: the fates. But his majesty, one may hope, will consent
• 8:13
  Speaker 1: to come honorably to Paris at all events. He can
• 8:15
  Speaker 1: visit Paris anti national bodyguards here and elsewhere, must take
• 8:20
  Speaker 1: the national oath, make reparation to the trick color floundera.
• 8:25
  Speaker 1: Will swear. There may be much swearing, much public speaking
• 8:28
  Speaker 1: there will infallibly be, And so with harangues and vows,
• 8:32
  Speaker 1: may the matter, in some handsome way wind itself up
• 8:37
  Speaker 1: or alas may it not be all otherwise unhandsome. The
• 8:40
  Speaker 1: consent not honorable, but extorted, ignominious, boundless chaos of insurrection
• 8:46
  Speaker 1: presses slumbering round the palace like ocean round a diving bell,
• 8:50
  Speaker 1: and may penetrate at any crevis let, but that accumulated
• 8:55
  Speaker 1: insurrectionary mass find entrance like the infinite inburst of water,
• 9:00
  Speaker 1: or say rather of inflammable self igniting fluid, for example,
• 9:05
  Speaker 1: turpentine and phosphorus oil fluid known to Spinola santerre Into
• 9:12
  Speaker 1: Book seven, Chapter nine,