第21章 Chapter 21 June 1807: At Marienburg Castle

It was terrible journey; almost a thousand miles;. The last part of it was the worst. There were signs of war on every side. Dead horses. Hundreds of little crosses where men were buried. Burnt farms and broken buildings that used to the homes of the people. At last we reached our journeys end. It was an old grey castle. Even on a summer evening it looked cold and uncomfortable. "I could never live here," I thought.

Out coach drove through the great getway, and one of Jeans officers welcomed us warmly. He led me through several doors and up some dark stairs. At the top, there was a lighted room. A familiar figure was busily preparing a meal. "Fernand!" I said. Then I put my finger over my mouth. "I want to give him a surprise, Fernand. How is he?

"He is much better, madame. But he still has a lot of pain." Fernand opened the door for me quietly. Jean didnt hear me. He was reading a book beside a bright fire. Books and maps and papers covered the table behind him. His camp bed stood in a corner. That was all. I went nearer. "Dear Prince of Ponte Corvo," I said.

He jumped to his feet, "My God, its Desiree!" "Does your neck still hurt?" I asked. "Yes. It does. Especially when you put your arms round it," he replied with a laugh. He sat down and I sat beside him. Then I heard the door open. But it was only Marie and Fernand.

Jean said: "The princess needs a proper bedrom and sitting room, Fernand. Tell one of officers to get the necessary things. Any rich German family could supply them. And well have dinner in here together." I gave him news of Oscar and of Paris. Then dinner came. The wine and the chicken were welcome after my long day in the coach. When we had eaten, Jean gave me his own news.

"The Emperor wants me to govern all this corner of Germany," he said. "Not only Hanover. Bremen and Hamburg and Liibeck, and other cities, are giving him trouble. Their merchants still buy things from England and sell things to England." "Why not?" I asked. "Because England is still his enemy. While her warships control the seas, he can never conquer her. But he can harm her in other ways. If she cant buy and sell in Europe, she will soon become poor. So the ships of our conquered lands arent allowed to visit English harbours. "

I said nothing. I was feeling tired, and I was half asleep. "The German merchants are clever. They dont sail to England. They do their business through Sweden, because the Swedes and the English are friends." The "Sweden" woke me. Sweden was Perssons home. I would like to meet Persson again.

"What do you know about Sweden?" I asked. The question seemed to please Jean. "I know at lot," he replied. "For a special reason Ive read several books about that country. When my army took Liibeck, I found Swedish soldiers there. They became my prisoners. I invited their officers to dinner, and I learnt many things from them."

"Prisoners?" I said in surprise. "Are the Swedes our enemies? I didnt know that." "Who isnt our enemy? "Jean answered sadly. "Its a long story, but I want you to listen." He put a map on the table between us. "Look at these four countries: Sweden, Finland, Denmark and Norway. The King of Sweden rules Finland. He is always afraid that Russia will take it from him. He wants to please the Russians, so his Swedish soldiers have been fighting for them."

He put his finger on the map again. "The King of Denmark rules Norway. Norway doesnt like that at all. So if I was the Swedes chief minister, I would say to my king: Forget Finland. Give it to the Russians. If you dont, they will take it by force. But Sweden and Norway ought to have the same king---not Denmark and Norway. Persuade Norway to join us. Then we shall be one strong country. And Russia will be our friend. "

"Did you explain this to the Sweden officers in Liibeck?" I asked. "I certainly did. And I told them other things too. I said: Gentlemen, Napoleon is afraid that the English will attack him through Denmark. So he will take Denmark first. He will probably order me to do this. And if the Swedes are still Englands friends, he will tell me to take Sweden next. " "That worried them. But I went on: If you want to stay free, you mustnt join any group in thes wars. If you help England, France will attack you. If you help France, Russia will be your enemy." "The Swedish officers were very surprised. One of them---his name was Morner---said to me: You are a Frenchman. Why are you giving us this advice? "I replied: Because your army is very weak. IF I attack you, I shall conquer Sweden. So you mustnt give me an excuse for attack." Jean paused and finished his wine. "Will they tell their king?" I asked. I was so tired that I could only whisper. But this conversation seemed to be very important for Jean. "Theyre tired of their king," he replied. "Theyll soon put a new one in his place. The next king will be his uncle, Charles: a weak old man, with no children. But youre nearly asleep, Desiree. You must go to bed. Ill take you to your room." "Its warm here," I said. "I dont want to go to a cold bedroom." He blew the candles out, and we undressed in the firelight. Its shadows were still dancing on the wall when I went to sleep.