264 



FKAXCE. (HISTORY.) 



of the revolution wore beneficial for France. But 

 as the left side was constantly growing weaker, and 

 Uieir speakers were often called to order, they finally 

 resolved not to vote any longer. In the chamber of 

 jwis, the aristocracy also prevailed; and they 

 resolved that no i>eer could be arrested on account of 

 ci\ il suits, althougn all Frenchmen were pronounced 

 by the cliarter to be equal in the eye of the law. 

 The stormy session of 1821 finally closed May 1, 

 1822. 



The elections of the new deputies were managed 

 almost entirely by government. Villele even pub- 

 lished a circular letter, requiring all electors, who 

 were public officers, to vote for the ministerial candi- 

 dates. Although the opposition prevailed in Paris, 

 yet only thirty-one out of eighty new deputies were 

 liberal. The session of 1822 was opened by the king, 

 in the hall of the Louvre, June 4, and continued to 

 August 17. On the llth of June, the minister of 

 finance, Villele, declared, that the grant of the provi- 

 sional supply, which had been necessary for the last 

 nine years, would now cease, as he was ready to open 

 the budget of 1.823. The talents of this minister 

 gave him such an influence in the administration of 

 affairs, that, on the 4th of September, he was 

 appointed president of the ministry. He also 

 exerted a great influence upon public opinion, 

 through the ministerial journal, the Journal des 

 Debuts. But the ultras of the right side were dis- 

 satisfied with his moderation. He neither did all 

 that they wished, nor did lie act with sufficient 

 promptitude for them. Villele, like every other 

 French statesman, as soon as he had reached the 

 highest step of the administration, from which he 

 could survey all the relations of the country, under- 

 stood that France could no longer be governed as an 

 absolute monarchy ; and that, if the attempt were 

 once made, an abyss must open between the nation 

 and the throne, into which the minister who should 

 make the trial would be the first to fall. Corbiere, 

 minister of the interior, then agreed with these views 

 of Villdle. The most important acts of the session of 



1822 related to the new tariff', which, conformably to 

 the prohibitive system of Britain, and of some of 

 the continental states, laid new restrictions upon 

 commerce. The foreign policy, hi relation to Greece 

 and Spain, was also the subject of several warm 

 debates, which only delayed the discussion of the 

 revenue law above mentioned, with the adoption of 

 which the session closed. On the trial of Berton 

 and the other conspirators, before alluded to, the 

 attorney-general of Poitiers had attempted to impli- 

 cate the deputies Lafitte, Keratry, Benj. Constant, 

 and general Foy, as accomplices. He was therefore 

 accused by them as a libeller ; but he was protected 

 by his office, and Benj. Constant was condemned to a 

 heavy fine, on account of his severe remarks on the 

 attorney. 



The contest now approached its decision by the 

 general defeat of the liberal party, on the great 

 question, Shall France suppress democratic principles 

 in Spain by force ? The king opened the sessions of 



1823 (closed the 9th May, 1823), on the 28th January, 

 with a speech announcing the march of 100,000 

 French troops to Spain, for the purpose of reconcil- 

 ing that kingdom with Europe. Of fifty-one deputies, 

 who had voted against the ministry, forty-five, and 

 among them Benj. Constant, had not been re-elected ; 

 and the opposition was entirely without influence. 

 Villele, who did not unconditionally favour the war, 

 not being able to agree wich the duke de Montmor- 

 ency, minister of foreign affairs, concerning the note 

 to be sent to the Spanish government, had the good 

 fortune to obtain the approbation of the king ; iipon 

 which the duke de Montmorency resigned his place, 



and wns succeeded by the viscount de Chateaubrinnl 

 In the latter part of the session, the bills for the budget 

 of 1824, the loan of 100 millions for the extraordinary 

 expenses of 1823, the calling in of the veterans, and 

 the dotation of the chamber of peers and deputies, 

 proposed by the minister of finance, were adopted. 

 As the declaration of war was a prerogative of the 

 crown, the chambers could only consider the policy 

 of a war with Spain during the discussion of the 

 extraordinary credit of 100 millions. The peace 

 party, in both chambers, was composed of the ablest 

 and most experienced men. Manuel, the deputy ot 

 Vendee (who, in the former session, had spoken ot 

 the repugnance of France to the Bourbons), by soinc 

 allusions to the danger to which Ferdinand was 

 exposed by the invasion of the country by foreign 

 troops, drawn from the history of the French revolu- 

 tion, exasperated the right side to such a degree, that 

 they voted (March 3) his exclusion from the present 

 session, without allowing him to make his defence, 

 and in violation of the rules of the chamber. Manuel, 

 nevertheless, took his seat in the house on the 4th 

 March, and, the national guard refusing to act, was 

 forcibly dragged from the chamber by the gendarmes. 

 The left side, with the exception of a few members, 

 quitted the house ; those who remained, with several 

 of the left centre, declined voting : sixty-two mem- 

 bers presented a formal protest against the exclusion 

 of Manuel. There was now only a silent opposition 

 in the right centre in favour of peace ; but the 

 extreme right, or the party of Labourdonnaye, con- 

 tinued to attack Villele, the president of the ministerial 

 council, and Labourdonnaye publicly declared his 

 dissatisfaction with the c/iarte, and with the neglect 

 to restore the national domains to the emigrants. In 

 the discussion of the budget of 1824, in which the. 

 estimated expenditure amounted to 900 millions, the 

 report attributed the greatness of the sum to the 

 revolution, which had swallowed up the estates of the 

 church, leaving the clergy to be paid by government, 

 had consumed the funds of charitable institutions, 

 now to be supported by the state ; created a great 

 number of officers, which could only be dimin- 

 ished gradually; lost the greatest part of the colonies, 

 those which remained costing 6,000,000 francs more 

 than they yielded ; and finally augmented the public 

 debt 100,000,000 in rentes since 1788. The war 

 began, and the result (see Spain in 1823) was the 

 triumph of the Bourbons ; the monarchical principle 

 was established ; the Bourbons acquired a little po- 

 pularity with the army ; and this expensive campaign 

 of six months was thus of some importance in strength- 

 ening legitimacy. Baron Damas had succeeded the 

 duke of Belluno, as minister of war, in the begin- 

 ning of the war. The session of 1824 was opened 

 March 23 ; the number of liberals was reduced from 

 110 to seventeen. A supply of 107,000,000 francs 

 for the extraordinary expenses of 1823 was granted, 

 and the bill providing for the septennial election of 

 deputies was adopted. The Spanish war had cost 

 207,827,000 francs. Spain had stipulated for the 

 payment of only 33,877,700. To meet this exigency, 

 Villele brought forward a proposal to reduce the 

 rentes from five per cent, to three per cent., which 

 was adopted by the deputies, but rejected (3d June) 

 by the peers. Chateaubriand, for refusing to defend 

 the bill, was deprived ot the portfolio of foreign aliairs, 

 and became a violent opponent of government. The 

 other measures of the ministry were earned, in both 

 houses, by a great majority; and the motion of 

 Labourdonnaye for the indemnification of the emi- 

 grants was rejected. Soon after the close of this 

 session (August 4), the government renewed the 

 censorship of the public journals, chiefly through the 

 influence of count Fniyssinous, bishop of Hermopolia, 



