1828.] 
Prince Ferdinand ascended the throne 
(March, 1808), imprisoned and confiscated 
the property of Godoy, and appointed the 
Duke of San Carlos Grand Master of the 
Household, and Member of his Privy Coun- 
cil. The Duke arrived in Madrid some 
days before his royal master’s departure for 
Bayonne, accompanied him in his journey, 
and had several conferences with Buona- 
parte on the subject of exchanging the 
crown of Spain for that of Etruria. In 
those conferences, the Duke invariably in- 
sisted that Ferdinand would not consent to 
any treaty, without the enjoyment of his 
liberty, or without the sanction of the Cortes. 
In the interim, Gedoy had been liberated 
in Madrid, through the influence of Murat. 
He immediately proceeded to Bayonne, 
whither he was followed by Charles IV. 
and his queen. The old monarch then re- 
tracted his abdication, and, ultimately, his 
son was cempelled to restore to him his 
crown. Ferdinand — Joseph Buonaparte 
having first been placed on the throne of 
Spain—was sent to Walencay, in France, 
whither he was accompanied by the Duke 
of San Carlos, the Canon Escoiquitz, &c. 
The Duke remained with Ferdinand till 
he, with Escoiquitz, was ordered by Buo- 
Naparte to Paris. While in that capital, 
he ayailed himself of the opportunity to 
confer with the diplomatic agents of Russia, 
Prussia, and Austria, on the affairs of Spain. 
Buonaparte, afterwards suspecting the in- 
fluence possessed by the Duke, and by 
Escoiquitz, over his royal captive, deter- 
mined upon separating them from Prince 
Ferdinand. The Duke was accordingly 
confined at Leons-le-Saulnier, and the Ca- 
non at Bourges. 
In his retirement, the Duke of San Carlos 
cultivated his taste for botany, and more 
particularly for history, politics, and general 
literature. Five years had Ferdinand and 
his relatives been in captivity in France, 
when Buonaparte, finding himself attacked 
by the allied powers of Europe, and no 
longer in a condition to leave a numerous 
army in Spain, determined to reinstate him. 
In consequence of this resolve, he recalled 
the Duke of San Carlos to Paris, in the 
month of November, 1813. There San 
Carlos communicated with the Duke of 
‘Bassano, and then went to Valengay, 
where, after several long discussions, a 
_ treaty was concluded on the 11th of De- 
eember. The Duke, in consequence, set 
out for Madrid, to obtain the consent of the 
Regency to the treaty. He arrived there 
on the 16th of January, 1814; but the 
_ arrangements proposed by France were not 
accepted, and he was under the necessity of 
returning to Valengay. In passing through 
Catalonia, he had a conference with Mar- 
shal Souchet, on the subject of evacuating 
Spain by the French army. Previously to 
e Duke’s arrival at Valencay, Ferdinand, 
ient of his return, had despatched 
Joseph Palafox, to Madrid, with new 
Biographical Memoirs of Eminent Persons. 
435 
instructions. At length, after many ob- 
structions, the King, accompanied by the 
Duke, set out upon his return. It was 
found expedient to proceed, in the first in- 
stance, to Saragossa; and, the Cortes not 
choosing to give up the reins of govern- 
ment, they next went to Valencia, in the 
month of April. 
On the third of May, the Duke of San 
Carlos was appointed first Secretary of State. 
In consequence of the refusal of General 
Freyre to accept the office of Minister of 
War, the Duke accepted it, in conjunction 
with that of Minister of the King’s House- 
hold. The former post he soon afterwards 
resigned in favour of General Eguia. 
The Duke of San Carlos was presented 
by the Emperor of Russia with the decora- 
tion of the Order of the Black Eagle—by 
the King of Prussia, with that of the Red 
Eagle—and by the King of Naples, with 
the insignia of the orders of Saint Ferdi- 
nand and Merit, and Saint Januarius ; with 
a very flattering letter of thanks from his 
Sicilian Majesty, for his having contributed 
to his re-establishment on the throne. 
Soon after the restoration of King Ferdi- 
nand, the Duke, his minister, commenced 
the task of introducing a system of economy 
into the kingdom: he established a junta 
of ministers, over whom he presided—took 
various measures for a general repair of the 
roads, increasing the number of canals, and 
reviving the credit of the national bank— 
and he established several academies for the 
cultivation of the arts and sciences. Not- 
withstanding these very laudable exertions, 
his enemies were numerous; and, finding 
them increase, he, in the month of Novem- 
ber, 1814, obtained permission to terminate 
his ministerial functions. 
In October, 1815, he was nominated 
ambassador to the Austrian Court. In 
1817, he was recalled, and sent, in the 
same capacity, to the court of Britain, where 
he resided some years, till replaced by the 
Duke de Frius. His next and last diplo- 
matic appointment, which he heid until the 
time of his death, was at the French Court. 
He died at Paris, of an aneurism of the 
heart, on the 17th of July, in the present 
year. His health is said to have declined 
very rapidly, since the death of his favourite 
daughter, the Countess de Lessine. He is 
succeeded in his title and estates by his 
eldest son, the Count del Puerto, an officer 
in the royal guards of Spain. 
M. CHARLES. 
Jacques-Alexandre César Charles, late 
librarian to the Institut Royal, at Paris, 
whose name recals to our recollection the 
progress of experiments in natural philosophy, 
and an extraordinary discovery, was born at 
Baugency, November 12, 1746. In his 
early years he cultivated music and painting, 
and was remarked by a delicate and singu- 
lay facility in acquiring the most varied 
talents. He occupied, for some time, an in- 
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