I Am Louis XIV

  Chapter 369

When people of later generations write a biography of Prince Eugen de Savoy, they usually encounter several difficulties, either because they cannot get a definite answer, or because they are likely to be considered by Prince Eugene's admirers as them. It is intended to slander or ridicule this outstanding and great military strategist.

Among them, there are two problems that are most easily criticized. One is that although Prince Eugen had outstanding military exploits, he was generously awarded the title of prince by Louis XIV even after he gave up his birthright. There has never been a publicly acknowledged marriage, or a lover, or a child. There was even a time when it was doubted that Louis XIV was deliberately avoiding a prestige leader in his court and army, but it turns out that Louis XIV had promised him more than once that whatever Prince Eugene was willing to marry. What kind of woman, as long as she is innocent, or not so innocent, as long as he is willing, His Majesty the King is willing to knight her so that she can be publicly and legally with Prince Eugen.

But such a proposal was undoubtedly rejected by Prince Eugene, and his valet, as well as the king's valet, Bontang, and the Duchess of Montpensier, also mentioned in their autobiographies and biographies about Versailles When he arrived, the prince didn't seem to have fallen in love with anyone. Even if a noble girl was willing to throw flowers of love to him, he would only take a step back indifferently, letting the delicate petals shatter under his feet.

He had no children, and in the end he handed over his title and territory, and most of his assets to his close friend, the future King Louis XV of France, as well as some fragmentary, commemorative medals and jewelry. The relic box was equally distributed to several friends - most of them are related to the Bourbon royal family. After all, he has been in Versailles from the age of nine to fourteen, and has grown up with the princes and princesses. Great - Hundreds of years later, people in Italy, in the Netherlands, or in Spain's national museums can see the world-famous Grand Marshal's gifts to friends.

Originally, there should be such a treasure in the Royal Museum of Sweden-Prince Eugen gave the then Queen of Sweden, and the eldest princess Elizabeth of France was a holy relic box with a strand of hair said to be the saint Nicholas. It is not known, because when the Queen of Sweden (the Queen Mother) died, several things were buried with her, her husband's portrait, the children's baby teeth, her father Louis XIV's handwritten letters (mainly congratulations) birth letter), and this reliquary.

It's not that no one has guessed whether there is a simple and painful emotional story between the two, but except for the few years in Versailles, since Prince Eugen entered the army and served in the army, the eldest princess Elizabeth married into the Swedish royal family. They have never met, except for the last holy relic box, and there is no trace of any letters or messengers communicating on their behalf.

Another thing, which was occasionally brought up to relatives and friends by an officer of the Count of Soissons, was that Prince Eugene's first battle was not as one might think in the War of the Grand Alliance in 1682, but when he had just come of age as a As a teenager, the first year, or even the first month, of joining the French army, a battle with rebellious thugs in the town of Kings in Lorraine.

The only reason why people question the authenticity of the war is that there is no record of the battle - there were some sporadic rebellions in Lorraine-Alsace during this period, but it was innocuous, and the proud Sun King even gathered him All the generals and marshals drank and sang all night at Versailles to celebrate the French victory over the Ottomans, and sent only the first students of the Royal Military Academy to crush the poor scum.

Because of the strict requirements and audits of the military system, regulations and written records by the Sun King, Mr. Colbert, and the Marquis of Lois, people in later generations did find the name of Prince Eugen on some documents. Of course, he was not at that time. The prince, and the later Duke of Vendôme, Louis Joseph de Bourbon, and the Count of Soissons as the commander, the father of Prince Eugene, according to the time on paper, the then Prince Eugene He is only fourteen years old. Although he can be called an adult at such an age, he is still a while away from being able to speak, and this is the first time he has left Paris and Versailles.

Scholars agree that Prince Eugene should have existed as a spectator in this battle, and that the Count of Soissons could not have put him in command of the army or fought, and the records seem to bear this out, but the officer The content written by the relatives set off an uproar.

For in this record, the officer, who was the captain of the grenadiers, clearly states that at that time, the grandson of Prince Eugene, who was then M. Eugene the Younger, and the Duke of Vendôme, discovered a group of about fifteen hundred people. The Austrian mercenaries were resting in the valley less than a thousand feet away from the town where they were located. It was Mr. Eugen the little who refused the order of the Count of Soissons to retreat to the town and insisted on taking the initiative to advance and attack the enemy-he The method was to collect all the coal tar in the glass factory, put it in water bladders, and let him, along with two or three hundred brave grenadiers, mount the cliffs on both sides of the valley, and then throw it down from the top, and set it on fire.

Coal tar was originally a viscous liquid that was very easy to burn, and it was in the early spring. There were far more dry branches and leaves in the valley than newly sprouted buds. The narrow bottom of the valley immediately burned, and the officer did so. Describe to his relatives: At both ends of the valley, our soldiers were waiting, those who rushed out were killed, and those who remained in the valley—he didn’t know how to describe it, he All I know is that when the fire got smaller and the smoke was blown away by the wind, when they walked in, even through the thick leather boots, his feet were still burned by the ground; When they were together, they couldn't see what the black piles were. The air was filled with a strange, choking smell. The priest followed them. He threw holy water into the air, and the holy water immediately melted when it touched the ground. Made a little steam...

He and the other soldiers were ordered to open the "things", he didn't think there were people alive inside, the whole canyon was black - a friend of his found a body, which was covered after being opened It exploded with a thud, and the hot crumbs splashed all over his and his friends' faces—they almost went mad.

  After they did these things, some soldiers moved in those who were lucky enough to rush out of the valley, but still could not escape death. Their bodies were burned to twisted, charred black...

Such a terrible thing makes every participant just want to forget as soon as possible, and the Count of Soissons also hopes that they can keep silent. mentioned by relatives.

War has always been the most cruel, as people say, death may be just a number, but such death - for the people of the time, not bright enough, not moral enough, not even romantic enough (yes, this is the French), this The admirers of Prince Eugen were simply furious, because during his fifty-year military career, Prince Eugen has always been known as the "gentleman of the battlefield". He is not only willing to respect his friends, but also his enemies. To say that he did not hesitate to burn more than a thousand people to death in a narrow valley when he was a fourteen-year-old boy without resorting to unnecessary means of injury and killing is truly sensational.

The rebuttals they put forward are not out of nothing. One: the relatives of this officer are also the recorders of this tragic incident. Fortunately and unfortunately, he is not an ordinary person. He is a famous writer. There have been several good works that made people cry. Of course, in the process of recording, he could not be as impressive and rational as a pure recorder. He even wrote from the perspective of the officer. In this way, in the While greatly enhancing the infectiousness of this record, it also greatly reduces its authenticity and credibility.

Two: Versailles, Paris, and Lorraine have no relevant records on this matter. Someone went to the local area to look for the canyon where 1,500 people were buried, but nothing was found. After the Lorraine rebellion was assessed, Louis X Si decided to expand the glass and steel industry, so with Kingstown as the center, the French used gunpowder to flatten the surrounding rocky mountains for several miles, which had long been turned into a strong city.

three. Hundreds of years later, there are still people trying to find evidence that this happened, they used metal detectors, and some things that are completely incomprehensible to ordinary people - because in that record, no one took the weapons and equipment of the dead Or accessories, money bags, and the artillery the officer mentioned, so even if the canyon was intentionally buried, those things must still be there.

   They got nothing.

  ———

Of course, nothing was gained, because Louis XIV decided to suppress this matter after seeing the report of the war between the secret letter and the Count of Soissons. A king or a duke could pierce two hundred aliens in Camnico. Christian, now little Eugen can't bear the weight of burning 1,500 people - he doesn't want such a reputation to follow a fourteen-year-old child, and he also vaguely feels - little Eugen's The behavior is related to the fact that those soldiers are from Austria.

   Several years ago he was sure that little Eugen had not forgotten what happened before the age of three. He knew that he was not the biological son of the Count of Soissons, his biological father was Leopold I, Emperor of the Holy Roman Empire.

   and Princess Elizabeth.

The king ordered the Count of Soissons to first move the wreckage and artillery to another place, bury the valley, expand towns and factories, and transplant fast-growing plants, not to mention fifty years, but only ten or twenty years. , people will no longer recognize the original appearance there - he does this, in addition to pity for little Eugen, there is also some appreciation. The Count of Soissons did not write it in the letter, but asked the wizard's raven to pass a message on his behalf. He was worried that the heart of little Eugen was affected by the Habsburg blood in his body - but Louis thought so , it may not be Leopold I who brought bad little Eugen, but him.

He used a similar trap against the Ottoman Turks, but with gunpowder, the traps were placed in the castle, and the results were much more prominent than the 1500 of the little Eugen - that's 10,000 . Little Eugen rejected the proposal of the Count of Soissons, and adopted this seemingly cruel method - but it can ensure that his own strength is not compromised to the greatest extent. In fact, in that battle that could not be called a battle, the French Only a dozen soldiers were wounded.

   But it is very difficult to convince such stubborn old nobles and generals as the Count of Soissons, so Louis XIV has no more explanation, anyway, his will will always be followed.

But this is all later. When the king was reading this letter, Prince Conti was bringing a distinguished guest to meet the king. Prince Conti suddenly became King Ludwig of Poland after his brother. After Hee I, he settled down for a long time, but seeing that Louis XIV was not angry, he was even happy to see Bourbon's blood extending to the eastern region of Europa, as a distant relative and half-brother of the Sun King (his wife was also a Mancini), and he was in good spirits again, and when he saw the king's smile, he bowed and asked briskly, "My sire, is there any good news?"

   "Not much good news," said Louis XIV. "The children had a small victory in Lorraine."

   "There are always people who are over-thinking, like the clown jumping on the beam," Prince Conti complimented as if singing a poem: "But I don't know that it is useless except to make people laugh."

  Louis XIV nodded mildly, "You're right, just some little people." He said, "But do you have something to tell me?"

   "There is a guest," said Prince Conti, "who wishes to be here to greet you."

"He should not be an ordinary guest," because Prince Conti took him directly outside the king's room. There were many princes and princes waiting to meet the king outside Versailles, and the time they had to wait varied from one day to one month. , "But you still want to tell me, who is he?"

"A man who wishes to be in-law with you." Prince Conti swept the room from side to side. He paused when he saw Bontang, but the squire told him with a calm expression that he would not leave—he would only Following the king's order, Prince Conti coughed softly. "Your Majesty," he said, "it is another king who wants to see you."

Before he said the second sentence, Louis XIV was still thinking about which other in-laws he would have - the eldest princess is already the queen of Sweden, the duke of Colonna is also the son-in-law of Cosimo III, and the next is the Dauphin Louis the Younger The marriage with the Portuguese princess... When Prince Conti finished speaking, he immediately guessed it, but he couldn't help but be a little bit unbelievable.

   "You mean..."

   "Yes, that is the one, Your Majesty," said Prince Conti.

  ——Carlos II was once the nightmare of the great county lord.

Now it still seems, it wasn't that Louis XIV was mean, the wizard's potion cured his epilepsy, but it didn't make him handsome - even Merlin couldn't have done it in the first place, or the lady he was after wouldn't have been Without hesitation he locked him in a rock.

His face is condensed with the poison of Habsburg's long-term intermarriage, and he will become more religious when he sees him Louis XIV - he must thank God, he may have more than half of the Habsburg blood in his body, and his The wife is also a Habsburg woman, he, their children can have beautiful faces and dignified bodies, for no other reason than a miracle created by God - like Carlos II, so that later generations can study genetics people feel comforted.

Carlos II was born in 61. He once comforted Philip IV, because at that time Philip IV was also fifty-six years old. He had four brothers on him, all of whom died for various reasons. Now, his arrival made the whole of Spain fall into a carnival. Unfortunately, this joy did not last long... Soon people found that this child was weak and dull, and was no different from a demented fool.

   When he could "adult", the Queen Mother and Archbishop of Toledo, who were still holding a glimmer of hope, fell into despair. A king who could not have descendants can be said to be born dereliction of duty. Why was Queen Christina of Sweden abdicated? It's because someone testified that she was a woman who couldn't have **** with a man! If she wasn't the queen, maybe she'd be burned, not just exiled - the same with Carlos II, although as a male he could have struggled until he was fifty or sixty (before that could be all sins) to the queen) to admit that he was a useless piece of trash, but even without the help of the Duke of Don Juan, when he was fourteen or twenty, and he had not conceived a woman, the princes and nobles would have been dissatisfied , they even looked outside, looking for another heir to the throne.

  The king serves the kingdom, not just talking.

At that time, Carlos II will not only be unable to become a king, he will even be used as a commodity and a weight in political transactions like those princesses in vain, let alone power, even marriage, life and death or reputation will not be able to do it by himself. Control—perhaps chaotically tortured by chronic illness, not to mention educated Carlos II would not have such pain, but now... he stands in front of Louis XIV, it means that he has taken the first step, and in In Spain, he also has supporters, otherwise he would not be able to appear in front of the French king.

Carlos II stood in front of Louis XIV. His body can be said to be between a teenager and a youth, but his mind is still like a child - but not an ordinary child, but in the conspiracy and conflict, sharpened to the point of blood , because of a heart that has become extra sharp and sharp, he is like a rough beast, Louis thought, if he has the gift of being a king, he has it, Leopold I has it, Karl XI has it, no need Doubt, Carlos II in front of him also has it, but Carlos II is better than Karl XI. Although Karl XI's mother and the regent are greedy, at least they will not regard the child as a child who can be manipulated at will. and abandoned puppets.

But before Carlos II became healthy, his ministers, mother and illegitimate brother did this. Louis XIV did not know if he could understand what happened before. He hoped that Carlos II would not understand, because that too Sad.

Carlos II was also watching Louis XIV, who was high on the throne, but seated, he stood at the foot of the steps, the eyes of the two were exactly level - but those were two faces of contrasting cruelty, Louis XIV We don't need to say much about his appearance now. The huge chin that Carlos II inherited from the Habsburgs is so serious that his entire face is tilted to one side, and it looks as if he was beaten by someone. The crooked mud man, his eyelids kept trembling, his eyes were as cloudy as a seventy-year-old man, his hair had almost fallen out very early, and now he was wearing a wig, but he could still see from his forehead and temples. There were clues, and when Louis said hello to him, he said it three times in a row, and the last one had to be raised to the point of being disrespectful before Carlos II could hear it.

  Although Louis XIV's expression remained the same, Carlos' heart kept falling. Why would he take the risk and come to Versailles alone? Because the Archbishop of Toledo told him that although King Louis XIV of France was an arrogant man who did not fear God, as a king, he had rich personal feelings, even if the feelings did not affect the country and politics, But it can play a big role in his trade-offs - when he married Princess Teresa of Spain, he continued to instruct her in letters on how to adjust to the French court; he sought Naples for his illegitimate son , but before that, he first brought the future wife of the Duke of Colonna to Paris in the same way that he solved his troubled wife for Cosimo III; he was choosing King Pedro II of Portugal for Dauphin Louis When his eldest daughter was the crown princess, he also specifically requested that the crown prince should have the right to exchange letters with his future wife; not to mention, when he sent the eldest princess Elizabeth to Sweden to marry, the kind of act that was almost arrogant His attitude made the ladies and nobles of Sweden complain endlessly... He is an impeccable king, but when he is a king, he is also trying to balance the balance of family affection and power.

And the only choice for the Spaniards now seems to be the daughter of the Duke of Orleans, who is also known as the Grand County Lord, but the father of the Grand County Lord, as everyone knows, is the most trusted younger brother of Louis XIV. People say that the king Even the throne is willing to share the throne with the Duke of Orleans, and it is not groundless - the Archbishop of Toledo even told Carlos II plainly that the former ministers of Versailles were willing to contract with Spain, even when he was still a sick man. The poor **** who can't get up from the bed and may die at any time, but the document proving his infertility was placed in front of them by the king of France. He used this to persuade them to reject Spain's marriage request. After all, they couldn't have sex. marriage is not protected by God and the law and can be declared void at any time.

Before Carlos II left, he had already made a maid pregnant, proving his ability to be a husband and a father, but these ministers who could persuade France might not be able to persuade the king of France, in the Ottoman Turkey. After the great victory of Louis XIV, the status of Louis XIV in the hearts of the French and even some foreigners has been chasing Saint-Louis, and his current words are rarely refuted.

On the one hand, Spain is very willing to form an ally with such a flourishing France. Inconsistent, but the two people that Carlos II is willing to believe, the Archbishop of Toledo and Juan Patinho, their ambition is to temporarily maintain closeness with France, and at the same time, they can secretly communicate with the Habsburgs of Austria. For this reason, the Archbishop of Toledo took the initiative to take on the task of appeasing Leopold I, while Patinho and Carlos II sought to gain the trust of Louis XIV.

It is not easy to gain the confidence of such a monarch. The interview of Carlos II is the best compliment. Otherwise, in the time of Camnico, the minister of Leopold I and the minister of Louis XIV. There is no need to be so preoccupied with how to arrange the meeting place, but let Carlos II see that Louis XIV's attitude towards him is very ordinary, as if he had met a young nobleman, not the king of Spain, not surprised. , nor happy.

Carlos II clenched his fist secretly. In terms of appearance and stature, he was doomed to lose points. The king of France probably would not believe that the Spanish Habsburgs would truly become his ally, but he had to try to persuade Louis X. Four - Spain and he can even make some concessions for this... Of course, no concessions are the best.

   But in this way, it depends on whether he can use his emotions to influence the Sun King.

   He didn't know what was causing Louis XIV's headache now.

   Frederick, the eldest son of the Elector of Brandenburg-Prussia, arrived at Versailles just yesterday.

   It is about half past eleven to twelve o'clock. It is added in this chapter, and all readers and adults can watch it at night.

   I have to go out tomorrow, so the first update will be ahead of schedule and updated at 12 noon.

   (end of this chapter)