136 - FOUCHÉ (Joseph, Duke of Otranto), 1759–1820.

FOUCHÉ (Joseph, Duke of Otranto), 1759–1820. Autograph draft, signed with his initials, of a letter to “L. B. de V.” (Baron de Vitrolles?), Prague, September 7, [1816], 2 pp., in-4. A fine letter from exile in which Fouché defends his political conduct, refers to his letter to the Duke of Wellington, and announces that he is writing his memoirs. Proscribed as a regicide by the law of January 12, 1816, the former Minister of Police had retired to Prague. He thanks his correspondent for a gesture of goodwill, before discussing the attacks directed against him and the publication, against his will, of his letter to the Duke of Wellington—written nine months earlier and “not intended for publication.” Faced with falsified versions circulating in German newspapers, he was nevertheless compelled to provide an authentic copy. Fouché strongly asserts the moderation of his conduct in the face of adversaries he describes as “relentless” and claims to be under attack by extremists from all parties. Neither his silence, nor his resignation, nor his exile “three hundred leagues from France” were enough to disarm his enemies. He, however, had a far more formidable response in store for them: his Memoirs. He promises a “frank and comprehensive confession,” while refusing to write “in the style of Jean-Jacques,” and asserts that he writes neither to stir up passions nor to flatter political factions. The end of the letter takes the form of a veritable political testament: ““I see no good except in order, and I place order above all else,” he writes, before concluding with this striking statement: “One must admit that French subjects were freer than French citizens have been for the past twenty-five years.” This is a beautiful account by Fouché at the beginning of his exile—a personal plea and reflection on order and freedom—but above all, an explicit announcement of his planned Memoirs, through which he intends to respond to his adversaries and reveal “all the secrets of [his] life.”