[Footnote 212:  Captain Boothby’s “A Prisoner of France,” ch. iii.]

[Footnote 213:  For Charles’s desire to sue for peace after the first battles on the Upper Danube, see Haeusser, vol. iii., p. 341; also, after Wagram, ib., pp. 412-413.]

[Footnote 214:  Napier, bk. viii., chs. ii. and iii.  In the App. of vol. iii. of “Wellington’s Despatches” is Napoleon’s criticism on the movements of Joseph and the French marshals.  He blames them for their want of ensemble, and for the precipitate attack which Victor advised at Talavera.  He concluded:  “As long as you attack good troops like the English in good positions, without reconnoitring them, you will lead men to death en pure perte.”]

[Footnote 215:  An Austrian envoy had been urging promptitude at Downing Street.  On June 1st he wrote to Canning:  “The promptitude of the enemy has always been the key to his success.  A long experience has proved this to the world, which seems hitherto not to have profited by this knowledge.”  On July 29th Canning acknowledged the receipt of the Austrian ratification of peace with us, “accompanied by the afflicting intelligence of the armistice concluded on the 12th instant between the Austrian and French armies.”

Napoleon at St. Helena said to Montholon that, had 6,000 British troops pushed rapidly up the banks of the Scheldt on the day that the expedition reached Flushing, they could easily have taken Antwerp, which was then very weakly held.  See, too, other opinions quoted by Alison, ch. lx.]

[Footnote 216:  Beer, p. 441.]

[Footnote 217:  Vandal, vol. ii., p. 161; Metternich, vol. i., p. 114.]

[Footnote 218:  Letter of February 10th, 1810, quoted by Lanfrey.  See, too, the “Mems.” of Prince Eugene, vol. vi., p. 277.]

[Footnote 219:  “Memoirs,” vol. ii., p. 365 (Eng. ed.).]

[Footnote 220:  Bausset, “Mems.,” ch. xix.]

[Footnote 221:  Mme. de Remusat, “Mems.,” ch. xxvii.]

[Footnote 222:  Tatischeff, “Alexandre et Napoleon,” p. 519.  Welschinger, “Le Divorce de Napoleon,” ch. ii.; he also examines the alleged irregularities of the religious marriage with Josephine; Fesch and most impartial authorities brushed them aside as a flimsy excuse.]

[Footnote 223:  Metternich’s despatch of December 25th, 1809, in his “Mems.,” vol. ii., Sec. 150.  The first hints were dropped by him to Laborde on November 29th (Vandal, vol. ii., pp. 204, 543):  they reached Napoleon’s ears about December 15th.  For the influence of these marriage negotiations in preparing for Napoleon’s rupture with the Czar, see chap, xxxii. of this work.]

[Footnote 224:  “Conversations with the Duke of Wellington,” p. 9.  The disobedience of Ney and Soult did much to ruin Massena’s campaign, and he lost the battle of Fuentes d’Onoro mainly through that of Bessieres.  Still, as he failed to satisfy Napoleon’s maxim, “Succeed:  I judge men only by results,” he was disgraced.]