The negotiations which Bonaparte opened with Alexander, when he yet wished to seem averse to war, resembled those oratorical paraphrases which do not prevent us from coming to the conclusion we wish.  The two Emperors equally desired war; the one with the view of consolidating his power, and the other in the hope of freeing himself from a yoke which threatened to reduce him to a state of vassalage, for it was little short of this to require a power like Russia to close her ports against England for the mere purpose of favouring the interests of France.  At that time only two European powers were not tied to Napoleon’s fate—­Sweden and Turkey.  Napoleon was anxious to gain the alliance of these two powers.  With respect to Sweden his efforts were vain; and though, in fact, Turkey was then at war with Russia, yet the Grand Seignior was not now, as at the time of Sebastiani’s embassy, subject to the influence of France.

The peace, which was soon concluded at Bucharest, between Russia, and Turkey increased Napoleon’s embarrassment.  The left of the Russian army, secured by the neutrality of Turkey, was reinforced by Bagration’s corps from Moldavia:  it subsequently occupied the right of the Beresina, and destroyed the last hope of saving the wreck of the French army.  It is difficult to conceive how Turkey could have allowed the consideration of injuries she had received from France to induce her to terminate the war with Russia when France was attacking that power with immense forces.  The Turks never had a fairer opportunity for taking revenge on Russia, and, unfortunately for Napoleon, they suffered it to escape.

Napoleon was not more successful when he sought the alliance of a Prince whose fortune he had made, and who was allied to his family, but with whom he had never been on terms of good understanding.  The Emperor Alexander had a considerable corps of troops in Finland destined to protect that country against the Sweden, Napoleon having consented to that occupation in order to gain the provisional consent of Alexander to the invasion of Spain.  What was the course pursued by Napoleon when, being at war with Russia, he wished to detach Sweden from her alliance with Alexander?  He intimated to Bernadotte that he had a sure opportunity of retaking Finland, a conquest which would gratify his subjects and win their attachment to him.  By this alliance Napoleon wished to force Alexander not to withdraw the troops who were in the north of his Empire, but rather to augment their numbers in order to cover Finland and St. Petersburg.  It was thus that Napoleon endeavoured to draw the Prince Royal into his coalition.  It was of little consequence to Napoleon whether Bernadotte succeeded or not.  The Emperor Alexander would nevertheless have been obliged to increase his force in Finland; that was all that Napoleon wished.  In the gigantic struggle upon which France and Russia were about to enter the most trivial alliance was not to be neglected.