Eagle's Glory

In 1825, his elder brother, Tsar Alexander I, died suddenly. Because of the dispute over the succession of his two younger brothers, Constantine and Nicholas, the empire temporarily fell into chaos in the succession of the throne. The Decembrists took the opportunity to revolt, and Nicholas used The tsar's will finally ascended to the throne and severely suppressed the rebellion, finally allowing the tsar's power to survive the crisis and continue.

After eradicating the domestic crisis, the tsar naturally turned his attention to foreign countries. He needed to use his reputation of external success to eliminate the criticism and dissatisfaction caused when he ascended the throne, and his ministers naturally knew how to cater to Shangyi. .

During the brief silence, the Tsar took the initiative to speak.

"Presumably you already know that there is news from Greece that Napoleon's son, that is, the Duke of Reichstedt, is trying to participate in their liberation cause and is willing to provide a lot of assistance. Therefore, my Ministers, what do you think of this?"

After contacting Prince Louis, the Greek government immediately sent someone to report the news to the Russian Empire. After a period of time, the news finally reached Petersburg. Village, to seek the will of His Majesty the Tsar.

"Your Majesty, I think that the long-pending Greek problem should indeed be settled," replied Mr. Karl Nesselrode, Minister of Foreign Affairs. "If we eliminate this problem, we will not cause trouble for others." space."

He is indeed a Turkey hardliner.

Although after experiencing the plague storm of the French Revolution, the Russian Empire instinctively hated revolution and rebellion, and believed that the existing order should not be easily changed, but the Russians were still full of sympathy for Greece, an Orthodox region.

After several years of hesitation and weighing, the Imperial Center has finally decided to help Greece's independent cause recently.

Under the leadership of the Minister of Foreign Affairs, the Russian Empire has begun to approach Britain and France to discuss how to properly resolve the Greek issue.

Unexpectedly, just when they started to act, such unexpected news suddenly came.

However, Karl-Nesselrode believes that this is irrelevant, and there is no need to change the existing plans.

"So what do you think should be done?" demanded the Tsar.

"We should inform the Greek government as soon as possible, and solemnly order them to end all contacts with the Bonapartists, and wait patiently. We will soon reach an agreement with other major powers to help them." The foreign minister replied immediately, "If necessary, they should use Expel that boy and his supporters by force, and there should be no room for the Bonaparte family in continental Europe."

The Tsar looked at the Chairman of the Council of Ministers, Viktor Kochubei, who only nodded silently in support of the Foreign Minister.

It seems that the two ministers have communicated with each other and reached a consensus before coming here.

Under the watchful eyes of the ministers, the Tsar was silent for a moment, as if he was thinking about something.

"Do as you say in Greece." After a while, he said leisurely. "However, compared to those Greeks, I think that little guy is quite interesting. He is not the same as his father. His father dared to land in France directly, but he only dared to test at the edge of the mainland... But He is kind and worthy of doing great things, if I can have such a son, I will be very pleased."

The two ministers looked at each other, not understanding why the Tsar suddenly said such words.

"The Greeks are struggling right now. Even if we can restrain the Greek government, there is no guarantee that no other group of people will go to cooperate with that little guy. If he forces his way in, I think it will be difficult for the Greeks alone to stop him." The Tsar continued, "So unless we use stronger measures, it will be difficult to ensure the silence of the Bonaparte family."

"Your Majesty, what do you mean?" The Foreign Minister asked quickly.

"We stop them with stern diplomacy, but if we fail to do so, then we solve all this with our own strength, march into Turkey, and get rid of him by the way," replied the tsar.

"March into Turkey..." The foreign minister and the chairman of the council of ministers looked at each other.

Although a little surprised, none of them felt shocked.

After all, war against the Turks has always been the traditional national policy of the Russian Empire, and it is not surprising that His Majesty the Tsar made this judgment.

The tone of His Majesty the Tsar became severe, "Karl, I need this honor. If the people see that even down-and-out ghosts like the Bonaparte family dare to fight for the freedom of the Orthodox Christians, while our Romanov family stands If we sit around and do nothing, then we will be pretty ugly in public opinion - and those who oppose me will attack me even more for it."

The Minister of Foreign Affairs understands that the bloody turmoil when he ascended the throne two years ago has always been a hidden pain in the heart of His Majesty the Tsar. Therefore, he pays more attention to maintaining his reputation and tries to restore his people's hearts through external expansion. The change of the Bonaparte family seems to be It further stimulated his determination to make contributions.

However, in the eyes of the foreign minister, it may not be unreasonable to hit the Turks with such a chaotic situation.

"Your Majesty, I have no objection to your idea, but I think we need time for preparations and necessary diplomatic coordination." After thinking for a while, the Foreign Minister replied. "The Turks are definitely not our opponents now. They are already weakened, but the attitude of other people must be taken seriously. If Britain strongly opposes it, we will be quite passive in diplomacy."

"And that's exactly your job, Your Excellency the Minister." His Majesty the Tsar immediately emphasized, "Karl, I have made up my mind on this matter, and then you should focus on this as the focus of coordination work—if Britain and France It’s best to agree with Austria. If they don’t agree, I will also let my blade cut to Constantinople. The Russian people are calling for me, and I must take strong actions to answer their call .”

Seeing that His Majesty had already made up his mind and his will was so firm, the two ministers naturally would not say anything more to anger the Tsar.

"Okay, Your Majesty." The Foreign Secretary nodded and agreed, "I will send a note to the ambassadors of various countries to explain the situation."

Seeing that his will was implemented by the ministers, the Tsar's mood became much better.

He looked around with interest, admiring the art on the amber panels.

"It has to be said that although the Bonaparte family is a headache for everyone, it also objectively contributed to our country's current status... Father let us march into Paris, and then son will facilitate our march into Constantinople." The Tsar His Majesty suddenly smiled, "I am quite interested in this kid from the Bonaparte family. If I have the opportunity someday, I would be happy to receive him here and see what he looks like. It is said that he looks very good , and a very good poet? It just so happens that we also have a poet here, maybe he will be very happy to meet this kid... In my opinion, their poets just do their job well, and don’t give it to others It's messed up."

"I think he would rather be an emperor than a poet," the Foreign Secretary joked with a smile. "Metternich has a headache for him. According to my report from the ambassador in Vienna, he has never seen Metternich so angry. He scolded Duke Rechstedt for being ungrateful..."

"Whatever he wants to be, that's up to him." The Tsar replied with a smile.　　

97, Pushkin

While His Majesty the Tsar was discussing state affairs with his important ministers, the outstanding "poet" in His Majesty's mouth was at the banquet hall of the Catherine Palace in Huangcun, and his good friend Boris- Peternovich-Volkonski for lunch.

Alexander Sergeyevich Pushkin, although he is only 28 years old, is already recognized as the best poet and writer in the empire, but the reason why he can be here is only because of his aristocratic status That's all, the harsh status hierarchy of the empire didn't leave much room for freedom even in the literary world.

However, Pushkin was not proud of this. He was brilliant and talented, and enjoyed a high reputation in Russia at a young age. However, his character of pursuing freedom was incompatible with the atmosphere of the imperial court.

He wrote poems several times, praising freedom and opposing the tsar's autocratic system, which must have offended the tsar.

In 1820, Tsar Alexander I ordered him to be demoted to the Caucasus at the age of 21. Two years later, he was transferred to Odessa, Ukraine, and he still insisted on creating in various bumps, and traveled the Caucasus Mountains, Dundee River steppe and Crimea, etc., to enrich their experience.

He insisted that the emperor's authority did not come from God but from human jurisprudence. Only when a ruler conforms to the freedom and peace of the people can his authority be respected, and blood cannot scare the people.

As he wrote in his long poem "Ode to Liberty":

Today, whether it is punishment or reward,

A bloody prison, or an altar,

None can be your true barrier;

Please, under the shade of jurisprudence

First bow your heads,

If so, the liberty and tranquility of the people

It is the eternal guardian of the throne.

His creation still continued the previous tone, and this made the Tsar intolerable. In 1824, Tsar Alexander ordered him to be taken to his hometown of Pskov for surveillance.

It wasn't until the death of the Tsar in 1825 that his younger brother Nicholas Kaki released him from surveillance and came to serve in the court, but on the condition that he was not allowed to create anti-government poems in the future.

Although he made concessions for the freedom of Pushkin, even so, he still did not completely lower his head. He once said to Tsar Nicholas I that he respected those rebellious Decembrist friends, and if he If you are in Petersburg, you will definitely participate in their uprising.

He even wrote a short poem "To the Prisoners of Siberia", praising the exiled Decembrists.

If someone else had uttered such words in the presence of the Tsar, then he might have been imprisoned, or at least exiled, but Tsar Nicholas I tolerated this offense.

Tsar Alexander I and Tsar Nicholas I were both very contradictory to this talented poet. They cherished his talent but hated his liberal tendencies and strange accents in his poems from time to time. Although the punishment is severe, there is always room for it.

Perhaps in the eyes of Tsar Nicholas, poets are just poets after all, and even if they have any nasty political views, they are irrelevant and cannot threaten their own rule. He is happy to use this talented poet to decorate his court.

And Pushkin also knew that although he praised freedom and dignity countless times, he was still a part of this autocratic empire, and he had never escaped from this system. Respect also allows him to enjoy the leisurely and refined life in Huangcun, and in order to keep everything he owns, he has to temporarily lower his head while his unrestrained thoughts, and temporarily cater to the reality.

This conflict between reality and ideals made him feel very depressed. Since he came to Huangcun, he has been in this kind of mental depression, and he found that he can't find any other solution. Live to temporarily numb your mind.

However, deep down in his heart, he was still looking forward to some unexpected flash of light that would shatter his dreary life.

Although he didn't know what that flash of light was, he believed that the world would be different after all, and that everything that was suffocating and dull at this moment would eventually disappear.

And now, he can only wait and enjoy his lunch in peace.

Opposite him sat a blond young man in the uniform of the Praetorian Guards. This young man was named Boris Volkonsky. He came from a noble family, and his relatives were very active in all circles of high society. , powerful, so his future is also very promising, the wives hope to marry their daughters to this promising young man.

However, Pushkin made friends with him not because of his family background and future, but because he was a pleasing young man. Funny people, who understand literature and have spiritual pursuits, are completely different from those young men who only drink and enjoy themselves.

The two chatted and drank each other, enjoying the leisure after lunch, and the time was slowly passing by.

However, even when chatting, Pushkin always seemed a little absent-minded. He casually perfunctory his friends, and looked at the lawn outside the distant window from time to time, thoughtfully.

"Alexander Sergeyevich, what is it that makes you look so sad?" Boris Volkonsky asked suddenly, "Does staying here make you so unhappy?"

"Compared with exile, of course I am happier here." Pushkin replied calmly, "But you also know that people hate boredom."

"So many girls can't get you out of boredom? Then you are really insatiable." Boris Volkonsky shrugged his shoulders as a sarcasm to his friend.

However, he quickly changed the subject, "Then let me provide you with some interesting news, I believe it will relieve you from boredom for a while."

"What is it?" Pushkin asked hastily.

Boris lowered his voice, and whispered to his friend.

"The Duke of Reichstedt, um, you know, Napoleon's son, has not been heard from since he escaped from Vienna, but news has just reached Petersburg these two days that he wants to do something in Greece cause, to help independent causes out there."

"What?" Pushkin almost cried out in astonishment.

He managed to control his emotions, and then asked the other party in a low voice, "Is this true?"

"My friend, you should know that there are never real secrets in the court." Boris replied with a wink and a playful smile, "Even if I don't tell you now, in a few days you will learn from others." learned all this from the whispers of men."

Pushkin was silent. He knew that what his friend said should be right. Although Boris usually liked to joke, he would not lie to himself about this kind of thing.

In other words, the heir of that great man is really unwilling to be silent, and wants to do something to make his existence remembered.

Interesting, very interesting.

His mood, which was gradually sluggish due to the daily dull life, suddenly had a little ripple, as if he was excited and uneasy about the new changes in the world.

But anyway, something new is better than all this boring stuff.

"Then what's going to happen next?" After a while, he couldn't help asking again.

Boris didn't answer immediately, but looked around cautiously.

After making sure that no one was observing and eavesdropping on the two of them, he moved closer to his friend and whispered to him.

"Based on the present situation, our war with the Turks may break out soon - His Majesty the Tsar will never allow anyone to steal his honor."

Pushkin looked at Boris in surprise, but he was not too surprised.

In history, the Russian Empire has fought countless wars with the Turks. This is not surprising. Moreover, in the past two years, there has been a group of people in the imperial court insisting on a tough line against the Ottoman Empire.

So what the young man did was not so much arousing the tsar's ambition as a fuse. He just ignited a war that should have happened.

He thought about it, then laughed again.

"Heh...haha. It's really interesting. Could it be that we are so intolerable to the Bonaparte family that we will send troops to destroy it if we hear any news?"

"The Bonaparte family is just an excuse. Who really cares about them now?" Boris Volkonsky shook his head. "Constantinople is the key. His Majesty the Tsar needs this honor."

"Will the great powers sit back and watch?" Pushkin felt a little hesitant.

Although he didn't care much about national affairs, as a court nobleman, he could instinctively feel something, so he realized the crux of the problem.

"Who knows, maybe it will or it won't. This is a matter for the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, and it has nothing to do with us." Boris Volkonsky picked up the glass and took a sip of red wine leisurely, "It will be the best, If it can’t be done, at least we can take the opportunity to cut a piece of meat from the Turkish Empire, isn’t that great?”

"It's true." Pushkin also nodded.

Pushkin hated autocracy and corruption, so he was naturally full of contempt and hatred for Turkey. Compared with Turkey, the tsarist system was nothing.

So he is also happy to see the Turkish Empire decline as soon as possible, so that the various nations enslaved by it can get the freedom they deserve.

He doesn't like war, but if it leads to national liberation, he's happy to see it happen.

"If there is a war, you will definitely go to the battlefield." After a while, he asked.

"Of course." Boris Volkonsky answered naturally.

As a famous nobleman and an officer of the Praetorian Guard, Boris Volkonsky certainly did not want to let go of this opportunity to make contributions.

"Then I wish you all the best and a bright future." Pushkin raised his glass to his friend. "My dear friend Boris."

"Come on, let's have a toast to our poor Prince Reichstedt." Boris Volkonski also picked up the glass with a smile, and then made another joke. "I wish the lad good health and thank him for bringing me to this war."

The cups of the two collided lightly, making a crisp sound.

"I'd rather you call him the King of Rome." After taking a sip of his wine, Pushkin said.

"That's too misnamed." Boris Volkonski shook his head, seemingly disapproving, "He has neither an empire nor Rome. In fact, I have already given him face by calling him a duke. After all, the Austrian Empire is still It's hard to say whether you want to admit this title... His Majesty the Emperor of Austria has a headache for this rebellious grandson."

"Some titles are not on the official roster, but spiritual." Pushkin said, taking another sip of his wine. "Compared with everything that has been rotten, at least he represents something new, something old. Something that has never been seen and is temporarily dusted. Although his father was punished by God because of his arrogance and tyranny, he did not miss anything."

Indeed, Pushkin had mixed feelings about Napoleon and the Bonaparte family.

As a hardcore liberal, he praised and applauded the French Revolution, and praised Napoleon for defending the fruits of the revolution and using the "Code" to establish the spirit of the revolution. After taking the road of autocracy, he hated Napoleon's subsequent invasion of Russia even more.

After learning of Napoleon's death, he wrote a long poem in which he expressed his complicated feelings for Napoleon: On the one hand, he hated Napoleon for being fascinated by power, becoming an invader, and finally being defeated by Russia. But on the other hand, he recognized Napoleon's nobility and achievements, and praised him for bringing freedom and glory to Europe.

The last paragraph of his long poem is to bid farewell to Napoleon with such emotion.

"Who is narrow-minded now,

Willing to suffer shameful infamy,

to issue rash condemnation,

To disturb the undead he deposed!

Ah, for the Russian people

pointed out the noble mission,

Give the world eternal freedom,