Napoleon: Guillotine , livre ebook

Napoleon: Guillotine
Benno Schlicker
Austin Macauley Publishers
2019-08-30
Napoleon: Guillotine About the Author About the Book Dedication Copyright Information Acknowledgement Part One Prologue Island of St Helena Chapter One Valence, June 1791 Chapter Two Paris, March 1792 Chapter Three Ajaccio, March 1792 Chapter Four Ajaccio, April 1792 Chapter Five Ajaccio, April 1792 Chapter Six Paris, June 1792 Chapter Seven August 1792 Chapter Eight August 1792 Chapter Nine September 1792 Chapter Ten Paris, January 1793 Sardina, January 1793 Part Two Chapter Eleven Ajaccio, April 1793 London, April, 1793 Chapter Twelve Toulon, June 1793 Chapter Thirteen Nice, July 1793 Chapter Fourteen Digne, July 1793 Chapter Fifteen Toulon, August 1793 Digne, August 1793 Chapter Sixteen Nice, August 1793 Chapter Seventeen La Valette, 1793 Part Three Chapter Eighteen Ollioules, September 1793 Chapter Nineteen Ollioules, September 1793 Chapter Twenty Le Seyne, September 1793 Chapter Twenty-One Toulon, September 1793 Chapter Twenty-Two Ollioules, October 1793 Chapter Twenty-Three Ollioules, 1793 Chapter Twenty-Four Battle of Fort Mulgrave, December 1793 Epilogue Island of St Helena Historical Note
About the Author
Benno Schlicker is a practicing Lutheran, who taught History and English in Adelaide, South Australia. He studied at Adelaide University, achieving an honours degree in History; his thesis on the Calvinist Iconoclasm in the Dutch Revolt resides in the Barr Smith Library. He currently works as a forklift driver and lives with his family in Adelaide.
About the Book
King Louis is imprisoned. The Republican faction in Paris is growing stronger as the beat of the snare begins to ring in the ears of Europe. To quell the seething discontent of threats inside and outside of France, Napoleon is dragged into supporting a regime that has thrown away any pretence of Liberty in its quest to cover the globe. All the while Napoleon is forced to challenge his own traditions and overcome the pain of betrayal and exile from his home, to continually prove loyalty to a country that spurns him still. As the blade rasps down and the cruelty of those he serves becomes even more difficult to justify, Napoleon must strive to preserve his exiled family and navigate the unconscionable. As France struggles to survive the onslaught of foreign invasion, Napoleon must conquer an inner turmoil so raw and powerful that it drove him to the siege of Toulon and the beginning of greatness.
Dedication
To all who served their country, in the past and present, whichever country that may be; and to my family for all their support.
Copyright Information
Copyright © Benno Schlicker (2019)
The right of Benno Schlicker to be identified as author of this work has been asserted by him in accordance with section 77 and 78 of the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988.
All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise, without the prior permission of the publishers.
Any person who commits any unauthorised act in relation to this publication may be liable to criminal prosecution and civil claims for damages.
A CIP catalogue record for this title is available from the British Library.
ISBN 9781528928861 (Paperback)
ISBN 9781528928878 (Hardback)
ISBN 9781528965651 (ePub e-book)
www.austinmacauley.com
First Published (2019)
Austin Macauley Publishers Ltd
25 Canada Square
Canary Wharf
London
E14 5LQ
Acknowledgement
Thanks to the Editorial, Production, Graphics and Marketing teams at Austin Macauley. I would like to thank Connor Browne, Anna Cooper, Catherine Borges, David Easton, Vinh Tran, Joseph Lee and Glen Agars for all their help and support.
I am also grateful to my family and Hampstead Lutheran Church.
Part One
Prologue

Island of St Helena
South Atlantic, 1825
The sound of the crackling fire soothed Napoleon, as Antoine poured him another glass of wine. Napoleon glanced at the room around him that had become his prison since his defeat at Waterloo. They were in the salon, and had adjourned there after having eaten some rabbit stew, hastily prepared by the resident cook, who had not expected a visit from Napoleon’s closest childhood friend. The salon was sparsely decorated compared with the rooms of his previous residences, when he was Emperor of France. The furniture was not lavish, and consisted of simple wooden chairs and tables. The chandelier above them was small, and missing a number of lights; giving a faint glow, rather than the splendid radiant light Napoleon could remember from greater days. The solitary painting in the room was a simple landscape, tranquil, yet tedious. But the residence at Longwood was adequate at keeping out the biting cold that swept through the barren, volcanic island; a small haven of relief on an uncomfortable and isolated piece of rock off of the coast of West Africa.
‘How’s the wine my old friend?’ Antoine asked as he took a seat around the small oval-shaped table in the centre of the room.
‘Terrible!’ Napoleon complained, after having taken his first sip, and placing it once more on the table before him. ‘It tastes like sullied dishwater. I suspect the servants have replaced my vintage with it,’ he said while chuckling. In truth, the servants were quite reasonable in the circumstances. He was allowed to bring a small staff with him to the island. They still called him General; a title that was both uplifting and wretched at the same time. It was a memory of his glorious past, and a reminder of his ultimate failure.
‘Well if you don’t like it, I’ll happily take it off your hands,’ Antoine remarked while forcing a smile for his old friend, ever playing the role of the cheerful joker; though his smile was imbued with the slightest sadness.
‘No, I’ve come to enjoy dishwater lately,’ Napoleon remarked cheerily, which brought a more genuine smile from his companion.
‘There’s your signature prickliness I’ve come to know and love,’ Antoine observed while taking a sip of his wine. ‘It tastes fine to me.’
‘Well, what do you know,’ Napoleon snapped back. The moment’s joviality curbed slightly. ‘Why have you come, Antoine?’ Napoleon said, the bitterness still clinging to his voice. It seeped out of him like an unpleasant odour; tainting the atmosphere with its distastefulness.
‘As I said, I’ve come to help you write your memoires,’ Antoine responded as he placed the glass back down on the table.
‘Why would I want to write about defeat?’ Napoleon asked despondently, his face full of misery, and his brow once again furrowed. He looked away at a small rat that had scurried towards the fireplace. Napoleon picked the inkpot on the table and flung it at the animal; sending the quill tumbling through the air and its black ink splattering all over the hearth. He had missed the rat, which ran to its hiding place within the walls. ‘Damned rodents!’ he cursed.
Antoine ignored the outburst and continued. ‘Did you not tell me once that you can learn more from a defeat than a victory?’ Antoine asked with a raised eyebrow, his spectacles moving up his nose as he spoke.
‘That sounds like something I would have said,’ Napoleon acknowledged. ‘When I was young and stupid.’ He took solace once more in the wine glass. Antoine ignored the comment and continued regardless. He had seen many a tantrum from the once great man.
‘I have here some old journals kept of your youthful adventures,’ Antoine said soothingly, as he reached into a brown leather bag by his side. He noticed the smallest glint of pride for the briefest of seconds as he pulled out five leatherbound books. The bindings were worn, and the pages were a pale yellow. Antoine handed the first journal to his aged friend, who opened it. The musky smell of the old paper was comforting. Napoleon recognised his neat handwriting. He read the pages as Antoine sat in silence, glad to have brought some cheer.
‘I remember this. This was when I was a child in Ajaccio. Before I left for Brienne. Before I met you,’ Napoleon said with joy clear on his face.
‘Will you tell of everything?’ Antoine asked politely.
‘I will not dirty my name or reputation,’ Napoleon stated emphatically. ‘It has cost me too much. For all I have achieved, I hope to be granted at least a semblance of respect.’
Napoleon drained his glass. Some of the wine dribbled onto his chin and he wiped it with his sleeve, though most of it still remained. Antoine could not help but feel pity for his first friend.
‘You were not all bad,’ he said as his oldest friend flung a clean napkin at the dishevelled figure before him, which landed in his lap. Napoleon picked up the napkin and wiped his chin.
Chapter One

Valence, June 1791
The warm summer sun illuminated the room in which Napoleon was tutoring his youngest brother, Luigi, one bright afternoon. The room was on the third floor of a man’s house by the name of Mle Bou. The old man had previously allowed Napoleon and other artillery officers of the nearby regiment to reside in his home. Le Fѐre regiment had undergone changes since last Napoleon had stationed with it. The storming of the Bastille had changed much throughout France, especially the army. His regiment had mutinied, as had much of the Royal forces two years prior, and had been disbanded, and then renamed. It was now called First Artillery Regiment, and the flag fluttering in the near distance on the training ground, displayed the two crossed cannons, in dazzling blue and red.
Napoleon gazed out of the window down onto the street. There, on the corner, a few soldiers staggered from the Hotel des Trois Pigeons, where Napoleon could remember drinking with the De Mazis’ brothers. Alex, who had graduated with Napoleon from the military academy in Paris, was drilling his company by the bridge, and Napoleon could hear the cannon fire floating on the breeze. He