Baltic Blunder: Europe at war in 1727 (the 2nd Edition)

[Archduke]

20: The Fall of Osterland

Mikhail Mikhailovich Golitsyn​

1727 had seen the Hanoverian Alliance suffer twin reverses against the Russians in Osterland, both at sea and on land. At sea, the renowned Royal Navy and its Swedish ally had been dealt a true defeat by General Admiral Fyodor Apraksin near to Kymmendalen. On land, Generalissimus Menshikov and Field Marshal Mikhail Mikhailovich Golitsyn had evicted Major Generals Henrik Magnus Buddenbrock and Karl Emil Lewenhaupt from Villmanstrand and Fredrikshamn respectively. This set of defeats for Sweden and her supposed protector, Great Britain, disavowed the jingoistic foreign policy of Carl Gyllenborg and Lewenhaupt, which allowed Arvid Horn and his partisans to regain control of the Swedish Riksdag. Under Horn's influence, King Frederik I and Queen Ulrika Eleanora of Sweden were convinced that the war was unwinnable and that the only path forward was to seek terms with Russia. Thus the Swedes spent the end of 1727 and the beginning of 1728 trying to persuade Russia to have mercy on Sweden and grant it peace. The Russians, however, found little interest in ending the war with Sweden. Even though Menshikov was readying to ride toward Germany for his ultimate glory, he still wanted a war to be fought at his rear, close to home. As Menshikov understood it, a war all the way in Germany was of little real worth to Russia and if that was the only war being fought he could expect his opponents to vilify him for a blatant glory-trip. In which case, Menshikov's opponents would surge in his absence. However, if Menshikov maintained a war only tens of miles away from the capital and against one of Russia's oldest fores, Sweden, then he could at least maintain the illusion of the necessity of the war while he chased after fame and fortune elsewhere. Thus Menshikov instructed the foreign minister, Andrey Osterman, to reject all Swedish peace missions until otherwise instructed, and so Sweden's diplomatic efforts fell on deaf ears.

Since Menshikov denied Sweden peace, Marshal Golitsyn was able to resume his offensive against the Swedes in Osterland in the summer of 1728. When the campaign began, the Swedes had maintained the positions they had established after abandoning the Osterland's coast with Lewenhaupt holding Helsingfors and Buddenbrock holding Nyslott. Accordingly, Golitsyn decided to split his army in two and confront both Swedish forces. Golitsyn imagined that he chased after just one of the Swedish armies that the other would move to retake Fredrikshamn and Villmanstrand or even threaten Saint Petersburg. Despite this division of forces in no way was Golitsyn weakening his forces and exposing the Russian position to counterattack. In fact, to match Lewenhaupt's 8,000 men, Golitsyn assigned an army of 16,000 and to chase Buddenbrock's 4,000 men, Golitsyn had an army of 8,000. Thus, in both western and eastern Osterland, the Russians outnumbered the Swedes two to one. Just in case the Swedes should be so brave and lucky as to bypass either Russian army, Christoph von Munnich was left behind to garrison Fredrikshamn and Villmanstrand with the remaining Russian soldiers. In light of these troop depositions, the desperation of Arvid Horn for peace is made even more clear.

When the Russian army came Lewenhaupt considered attempting to hold Helsingfors despite the severe inferiority in the strength of his army. However, after the Russians brushed aside the Swedish formation left to defend Borgoa, Lewenhaupt realized that he would not be able to hold Helsingfors for any significant amount of time. Thus, Lewenhaupt prepared to abandon Helsingfors and ruin its defenses. However, beyond superiority on land, the Russians had superiority at sea. At the war's beginning, this superiority had already existed but was not so severe as to make it impossible for the Swedish to resist. In wake of Kymmeneladen that no longer remained true as Russian capture of powerful British-built ships of line and the destruction of part of Sweden's fleet left the Swedish navy woefully outmatched. Golitsyn and General Admiral Apraksin made use of this advantage by transporting half of Golitsyn's army up Osterland's coast and past Helsingfors [1]. This ambitious operation failed to be stopped or even hindered by the Swedish navy, which too afraid of the Russians and too busy supplying Stralsund to respond. As a consequence, the Russians succeeded in leapfrogging Lewenhaupt's army and practically encircling him, which left Lewenhaupt with no choice but to retreat into Helsingfors.

Cut off by land and sea from all hopes of relief, not as if Sweden had any army to relieve him, Lewenhaupt's situation was hopeless. Still, Lewenhaupt felt that his garrison could hold out for some time and that each week that he hold on was a week that the Russians could not otherwise spend wasting Finland and threatening Sweden. Clinging to the legacy of King Charles XII of Sweden who was ever resolute in the face of danger, Lewenhaupt resolved to hold Helsingfors for as long as God might allow him to [2]. Lewenhaupt even got some idea about surviving till the winter when the Russians would be forced to retire towards Borgoa. Presented with this defense, Golitsyn did not throw away the lives of his men in costly assaults. Instead, Golitsyn established a siege to starve and bombard Lewenhaupt until he gave up. Thus through July and August, a siege of Helsingfors was undertaken with only the occasion sortie breaking the monotony. Eventually, in early September after two months of sustaining bombardment from land and sea and three months of starvation, the Swedes' will to fight on any longer had withered away and died. As far as Lewenhaupt was concerned, two months was an honorable defense and considerable time taken away from the Russian army. Hence on September 4, 1728, Lewenhaupt offered his surrender to Golitsyn. The Swedes were subsequently interned while Golitsyn went on to conquer Abo, Nystad, Bjorneborg, and Vasa before the year's end. Apraksin even ferried soldiers through the Archipelago Sea to the Alands Islands, which the Russians proceeded to conquer.

Unlike Lewenhaupt, Buddenbrock thought better of defending his post, Nyslott. Instead, Buddenbrock took to the countryside to engage in a war of skirmishes with the intention of delaying and wearing down the Russian conquest of Osterland. Although this strategy vexed and frustrated the Russians at times, it did not prevent them from gradually capturing more villages and gaining more land. This Russian advance was facilitated by the lack of support from the local people for the Swedes and lack of resistance toward the Russians. Less than a decade earlier, Osterland had been occupied by the Russians and was brutally oppressed during that occupation with rape, murder, looting, and over-taxation being common themes. This oppression spawned some degree of hate toward the Russians but more so fostered dread and fear. Thus when the Russians came again and offered the locals a choice of the sword or cooperation, the locals chose the latter. Without the support of these people, Buddenbrock was hard-pressed to stymie the Russian conquest. Ultimately, Buddenbrock was forced to abandon Osterland after Lewenhaupt's capitulation and fell back to Kajaneborg.

The surrender of Lewenhaupt's army and the evacuation of Buddenbrock's left Osterland entirely in the hands of the Russians. By the end of 1728, they held the entirety of Osterland and even infringed on Norrland. However, Lewenhaupt's honorable delay of the Russians had succeeded in preventing the Russians from conquering more of Norrland or taking their army across the Gulf of Bothnia to attack Sweden's core. Given the Swedish army being split up between Stralsund and Osterland, a Russian attack would have been able to devastate Sweden. Still, the Russian progress over the course of 1728 was immense and left Russia in possession of hundreds of square miles of land. Additionally, Apraksin's capture of the Aland Islands left the Russians in firm control of the Gulf of Bothnia, the Aland Sea, and the Archipelago Sea, which the Russians had used to bombard Stockholm a few times during the winter of 1728-1729. At this point, it seemed likely that 1729 would be filled with more Russian achievements and perhaps even a Russian occupation of Stockholm. However, all expectations of 1729 were shattered when news from Saint Petersburg promised to dramatically change the course of Empress Catherine's War.

[1] In wake of the Russian victory at Kymmenedalen, the typical Russian naval daring is increased even more and Apraksin is confident enough to attempt this operation.
[2] Honor was still a major factor in warfare at this point in time and defenders in sieges who had no chance of being relieved were mainly considered with honorably acquitting themselves. Also in the OTL Hats' War, Lewenhaupt despite being blame for the loss of Finland did not surrender Helsingfors. Lewenhaupt was recalled to Stockholm while Helsingfors was still in Swedish hands. Jean Louis Bousquet was the one actually responsible for surrendering Helsingfors. I think that Lewenhaupt who was an important Swedish general and politician is likely to focus on achieving an honorable capitulation.

Word Count: 1489

 

[Archduke]

21: Treaty of Vienna

Andrey Osterman​

Prince Aleksander Menshikov returned to Saint Petersburg from the Schleswig front on January 21, 1729. Despite the brevity of Menshikov's absence from the capital, less than a year abroad, the Russia which welcomed Menshikov home was quite different than the one he had departed from. Without his powerful figure close at hand to observe and respond to the machinations of his opponents, Menshikov's enemies had managed to gain a foot in the door to real power in Russia by carousing Empress Catherine I. The Golitsyn family had turned the military success of Marshal Mikhail Mikhailovich Golitsyn into absolute triumphs in Empress Catherine's eyes. Prince Dmitry Mikhailovich Golitsyn had so vividly and vibrantly described Mikhail's victories that Catherine had felt it necessary to name Mikhail to the Supreme Privy Council of Russia. This promotion turned the already heroic and honorable Mikhail from a celebrated general into a potential political rival of Menshikov. Additionally, the allies of the Golitsyns, the Dolgorukovs had risen back to the top. After months of entertaining the Empress, Vasily Lukich Dolgorukov had managed to convince Catherine of his indispensability to the functioning of the Russian state and earned himself a place on the Supreme Privy Council. Using this new position, Vasily Lukich secured the title of Field Marshal for his kinsman Vasily Vladimirovich Dolgorukov [1]. Overall, Menshikov's enemies gained two council positions and came to constitute half of Russia's field marshals. The only saving grace was that Menshikov's personal nemesis, Pavel Yaguzhinsky, was still far away in Poland struggling to manage the Sekm's politics [2].

Confronted with strengthened enemies, the reason for Menshikov's early return to Russia was all the more worrying. Once again, the Empress, Catherine, had fallen dangerously ill and provoked concern for her well-being. This time, it seemed doubtful that Catherine could miraculously recover from her illness. When Menshikov had left Schleswig he had still had some hope of possibly returning and walloping the Hanoverian army once he had defeated any of his opponents' plans to take advantage of Catherine's weak health and mental state. However, upon seeing both the dangerous growth of his rival's power and Catherine teetering on death's door, Menshikov understood that there was no place for him out on the front. Instead, Menshikov needed to be in Saint Petersburg, the center of all the Russian Empire's intrigues and plots, to personally oversee the transition of monarchs upon Catherine's death and prevent any plots against his power. Otherwise, even he, the all-powerful Menshikov, might end up being among the political exiles of Siberia.

Since Menshikov was no longer going to personally fight and lead Empress Catherine's War allowing the war to continue any longer immediately became worthless to Russia's first man. No longer was Menshikov going to add to his personal renown with victories as the Generalissimus of Russia. Instead, only his rivals, Duke Charles Frederick of Holstein-Gottorp, Marshal Mikhail Golitsyn, and General Admiral Fyodor Apraksin, stood to gain glory in coming battles. Without the triumph of victory, Menshikov's Russia had no reason to fight. Already, Russia's war effort had achieved its primary objective of fulfilling Empress Catherine's command to destroy Hanover and crush Britain and all its allies for their grievous assault on Russia. Brunswick-Luneburg had been overrun with Herrenhausen even being occupied, Britain had been trounced at Kymmenedalen, and Sweden and Denmark had both received beatings as part of the Hanoverian army. King George II of Great Britain had even been personally defeated a series of times. Russia's obvious war goal of humiliating the Swedes and securing the border had been more than achieved as Russia occupied all of Osterland. The only other potential war goal of Russia would have been to liberate Holstein and Schleswig for Catherine's son-in-law, Charles Frederick. The Russians had freed the former and part of the latter, which Menshikov convinced Catherine was enough. Anything more was not worth the bloodshed. If anything, the current front was a better border for Holstein-Gottorp's Schleswig anyway as it was easily defensible, or so Menshiov claimed to Catherine. All in all, Menshikov and other Russians concurred that Russia's war effort had done what was required of it and that no further war was necessary. Thus, Menshikov decided that the time for peace had come.

Typically in this age, despite fighting alongside allies countries would quit wars without them. Indeed, Spain had done just this in 1728 with the Treaty of Madrid and Russia had previously done the same in 1721 with the Treaty of Nystad. However, to conclude Empress Catherine's War Menshikov did not feel that the typical approach was appropriate. Although Russia could certainly secure a more than honorable exit from the war with a separate treaty that was not Menshikov's primary concern. Instead, Menshikov remembered that throughout Russia's history, foreign powers had consistently intervened in Russian politics. Since Catherine was expected to die, Menshikov desired to avoid provoking the ire of either the Hapsburgs or the Prussians. If any of Russia's allies had reason to harm Menshikov then their agents might interfere with the delicate process of a Russian succession and support or fund plots against Menshikov, which might be the key factor in Menshikov ending 1729 in a Siberian cabin. Aggravating Emperor Charles VI was specifically undesirable as he was the uncle Grand Duke Peter, Peter the Great's grandson. Thus Emperor Charles VI already had a significant interest in the Russian succession. To avoid unnecessary conflict, Menshikov sent Russia's foreign minister, Andrey Osterman, to Vienna to confide with the Emperor and even had the disgraced Alexei Petrovich Bestuzhev-Ryumin descend from Copenhagen to meet with King Friedrich Wilhelm I in Prussia at Herrenhausen.

Considering the might and influence which the title and dignity of Holy Roman Emperor still held in 1729, Osterman came to Vienna prepared and expecting to make a number of concessions to Emperor Charles VI in order to create a set of peace terms amenable to both the Emperor and Menshikov. Had Prince Eugene of Savoy and Philipp Ludwig Wenzel von Sinzendorf had their way then Osterman certainly would have had to find a serious compromise. Instead, Charles VI asked practically nothing of Osterman and Russia. Even though the Hapsburg armies had won the great victory of Bassignana and a political victory at Bellheim, Charles VI asked for no land for his realm. Instead, Charles VI's primary demand was that the signatories of the final peace treaty guarantee the succession of Charles VI's eldest daughter, Maria Theresa, to the Hapsburg family's territories. Besides this support of the Pragmatic Sanction, Charles VI asked that the Maritime Power's restrictions on the Ostend Company be ended or at the very least lowered. Neither of these terms was opposite to Russia's interests nor very demanding of the Hanoverian Alliance, in Osterman's view. For those reasons, Osterman gladly agreed to make those terms part of his negotiating position with the Hanoverian Alliance.

While Osterman quickly discovered and acceded to the desires of the Holy Roman Emperor in Vienna, Bestuzhev arrived at Herrenhausen to handle the interests of Prussia, Saxony, Mecklenburg-Schwerin, and Brunswick-Wolfenbuttel. The quick agreement between the Emperor and Osterman allowed for the Imperial minister, Friedrich Heinrich von Seckendorff, to join Bestuzhev in these discussions as an ally and a representative of the Emperor's interests. Together, Bestuzhev and Seckendorff first approached Friedrich Wilhelm I. Boldly, Friedrich Wilhelm I conveyed to the Imperial powers that Prussia wanted both the whole of Swedish Pomerania and the bulk of the Electorate of Brunswick-Luneburg as the price for its army's effort. The first request was necessary for Prussia's expansion and growth as a Baltic power and the second request was meant to humiliate Friedrich Wilhelm I's personal rival, King George II, and greatly augment Prussia's German eminence [3]. Furthermore, from the Holy Roman Emperor, Friedrich Wilhelm wanted his rights to Julich-Berg formally recognized to allow their annexation to the Prussian state. However, in light of the occupation of Brunswick-Luneburg by Saxony and Brunswick-Wolfenbuttel as well as the disinterest of both Russia and the Hapsburgs in greatly strengthening Prussia, the demand for Brunswick-Luneburg was flatly rejected. Indeed, Friedrich Wilhelm I's boldness was punished as Bestuzhev and Seckendorff proved to reluctant to grant Prussia even a piece of Brunswick-Luneburg or to promise him all of Pomerania. Meanwhile, talk of Julich-Berg was ignored entirely until the Prussians tabled the matter. Neither the Prussian king or the Russian and Imperial representatives were willing to budge easily and a difficult stalemate ensued.

While negotiations with Prussia stalled, Bestuzhev and Seckendorff engaged with the other German princes to discuss their interests. To Bestuzhev and Seckendorff's annoyed surprise, bold demands unequal to a state's power or influence were a common theme beyond Friedrich Wilhelm I. The smallest member of the Viennese Alliance, the Principality of Brunswick-Wolfenbuttel also went so far as to demand the whole Electorate of Brunswick-Luneburg. At the very left, Brunswick-Wolfenbuttel produced a copy of the last will and testament of King George I of Great Britain, which stated a plan for Brunswick-Luneburg to be bestowed upon a latter son of Prince Frederick's upon his death [4]. In the case that Prince Frederick failed to produce issue then rather then having George II's second son, William Augustus, inherit Brunswick-Luneburg, the Prince of Brunswick-Wolfenbuttel would. Another copy of the will in the possession of the Holy Roman Emperor confirmed this plan. Although this will gave Brunswick-Wolfenbuttel some weak chance of inheriting Brunswick-Luneburg in the future, Augustus Wilhelm, the Prince of Brunswick-Wolfenbuffel had felt it cause enough for him to be granted all of Brunswick-Luneburg in the coming peace. Naturally, Bestuzhev and Seckendorff found this to be an overreach. importantly, giving all of Brunswick-Luneburg to Brunswick-Wolfenbuttel would damage Bestuzhev and Seckendorff's efforts to please other German princes with territorial concessions. Furthermore, the elevation of the Prince of Brunswick-Wolfenbuttel to the place of an electorate would aggravate not just the German allies of the Viennese Alliance but the neutral powers of Germany who would all feel a sense of injustice at the empowerment of another German prince. Unlike Friedrich Wilhelm I, however, Augustus Wilhelm allowed himself to talked down into accepting just the Principality of Calenburg, which still constituted a major expansion of Brunswick-Wolfenbuttel and would have been out of the reach of Brunswick-Wolfenbuttel without the assistance of the Viennese Alliance. The only reason, Brunswick-Wolfenbuttel was treated so generously was that one of Augustus Wilhelm's nieces was the mother of Grand Duke Peter of Russia, a potential successor to Catherine, and that another was the wife of Emperor Charles VI.

King Augustus II the Strong of Poland-Lithuania also went so far as to demand all of Brunswick-Luneburg. Although Augustus the Strong did not have some semi-relevant claim to the electorate, he noted that his armies were the ones garrisoning most of Brunswick-Luneburg. For Augustus the Strong this demand was a question of gaining hereditary lands for his only son, Frederick Augustus, to inherit upon Augustus the Strong's death since the Polish and Lithuanians looked as if they would not elect Frederick Augustus as the next King of Poland-Lithuania. Of course, Bestuzhev and Seckendorff could not concede Brunswick-Luneburg to Augustus the Strong. However, Bestuzhev and Seckendorff were willing to hint at the possibility of Russian and Hapsburg support for Frederick Augustus in the future Polish-Lithuanian election. Although they did not put down anything in writing for Augustus the Strong to hold on to, the idea of Russian and Hapsburgs support was enough to push Augustus the Strong away from demanding all of Brunswick-Luneburg. Instead, he was talked into on principal accepting a small slice of the electorate, the Principality of Grubenhagen, near the western extremities of Saxony. However, Augustus the Strong continued to negotiate for more.

In contrast to his Prussian, Brunswicker, and Saxon counterparts, Duke Karl Leopold of Mecklenburg-Schwerin proved much easier to please. Duke Karl Leopold recognized his precarious position as a ruler who was only recently under Reichsexekution who had to worry about losing his own imperial estate let alone his new conquests. Due to his weakness, Karl Leopold only demanded the Swedish city of Wismar, the Duchy of Lauenburg, and affirmation of his position as Duke of Mecklenburg-Schwerin. All of these objectives had already been accomplished for Karl Leopold so it was merely confirmation, which he sought. Rather easily, Bestuzhev and Seckendorff agreed to give Karl Leopold Wismar and affirm his title. However, on the subject of Lauenburg, the Russian and Imperial proved less tractable. The issue was that Lauenburg remained an important bargaining chip for the Russians and Hapsburgs in their talks with both other Viennese allies such as Saxony and with the Hanoverian Alliance. As a consequence, Bestuzhev and Seckendorff held off on promising Lauenburg but left the idea on the table.

Regarding Duke Charles Frederick of Holstein-Gottorp, his demands did not need to be discussed with Bestuzhev as Menshikov and the whole Russian court were already fully aware of them. Charles Frederick wanted all of Holstein and all of Schleswig for his personal realm. For Charles Frederick's cousin, Charles Augustus, Charles Frederick asked for fair compensation in the form of Lauenburg or Bremen-Verden. Russia's opinion on these demands remained deliberately unclear as Menshikov did not want to upset the influential duke with a succession crisis approaching. In the past, Charles Frederick had shown a good degree of tact in handling Russian politics. Charles Frederick had even achieved a temporary reconciliation between Menshikov and Pavel Yaguzhinsky against all odds. Additionally, Charles Frederick as a member of Swedish royalty was the nominal head of the Supreme Privy Council. Charles Frederick made for a powerful opponent and it did Menshikov few favors to aggravate him at this point. Instead, Menshikov played his cards close to his chest and left Charles Frederick thinking that all his demands were possible.

Even though Bestuzhev and Seckendorff were still hammering out negotiating principles and treaty articles with the German princes, the imminent death of Catherine caused Menshikov to instruct Osterman to open negotiations with the French and English diplomats in Vienna, Theodore Chevignard de Chavigny and James Waldegrave, 2nd Baron Waldegrave, respectively. Alongside Osterman was the Imperial minister, Philipp Ludwig Wenzel von Sinzendorf. Still, unsure of the final compromises that Bestuzhev and Seckendorff would reach, Osterman and Sinzendorf decided to push Chavigny and Waldegrave from the very beginning with an impressive and overpowering set of demands. Firstly, Russia was to be compensated financially for Britain's attack on Apraksin's fleet at Osel and Britain would apologize for breaching the peace. Secondly, Sweden would give up Wismar to Mecklenburg-Schwerin, Pomerania to Prussia, and Osterland to Russia. Next, Charles Frederick was to get his wish of Holstein and Schleswig from Denmark while Charles Augustus was awarded the Duchy of Oldenburg. The Electorate of Brunswick-Luneburg would be partitioned with Bremen-Verden going to Saxony, Kalenberg to Brunswick-Wolfenbuttel, and Lauenburg to Mecklenburg. Only Brunswick-Celle and the electoral vote would remain in Hanoverian hands. To satisfy the Emperor, the Maritime Powers would end their opposition to Ostend Company and all signatories would accept the Pragmatic Sanction.

The litany of demands was flatly refused by Chavigny and Waldegrave who understood that neither of their governments could ever accept such a document. Indeed, when Cardinal Fleury and the leaders of the British parliament, received these terms they were piqued at the sheer audacity of the Russians and Hapsburgs. However, the French and British were still committed to carrying out negotiations. In France, Cardinal Fleury was desperate for an exit from the miserable war that he had never wanted. Meanwhile, in Britain, Compton's weakness made peace and the return of George II an urgent need for the British parliament so that George II could finally realize Compton's inadequacy and end the embarrassment of his leadership. Furthermore, the merchants were putting considerable pressure on Sir Robert Walpole to help Compton achieve peace through his brother-in-law Lord Charles Townshend, Britain's Northern Secretary. Even George II still commanding the Hanoverian army in Schleswig alongside King Frederik IV of Denmark and Norway expressed his amenability to peace. However, George II stressed that the sovereignty and integrity of Brunswick-Luneburg had to be preserved. Despite being a guest in the Kingdom of Denmark and dining with Frederik IV, George II expressed to Townshend his favorability toward Denmark-Norway and Sweden paying the price of peace. Townshend, however, the impossibility of imposing an unbalanced peace on a state as strong as Denmark-Norway.

As the subsequent negotiations between Osterman and Sinzendorf and Chavigny and Waldegrave proceeded slowly, the German princes and members of the Hanoverian Alliance began to talk amongst each other directly rather than negotiate through Russia and the Hapsburgs. After the Russians and Hapsburgs denied Friedrich Wilhelm I's ambitions for Brunswick-Luneburg or Julich-Berg, Friedrich Wilhelm I approached Britain with a proposal to reconcile their two countries and end Prussia's role in the war. The proposal called for Prince Frederick to be married to Princess Wilhelmine but also demanded that Prince Frederick be made regent of Brunswick-Luneburg. In essence, Friedrich Wilhelm I sought to turn Brunswick-Luneburg into a Prussian-friendly state that was separated from the politics of Britain. In exchange for Prussia's generosity in not seeking any part of Brunswick-Luneburg, Britain would support Prussia gaining Pomerania and its rights to Julich-Berg. Although Townshend was willing to accommodate this proposal as a means of separating Prussia from the Hapsburg camp, George II absolutely refused to condone the idea of giving up his sovereign rule over Brunswick-Luneburg to his son. A son, mind you, who remained very much a stranger to his father and a stranger who seemed to be stealing the glory and now the lands of his father.

Another significant set of discussions emerged between Karl Leopold of Mecklenburg-Schwerin and Friedrich Wilhelm I. Prussia had both interests and claims to Mecklenburg-Schwerin so it was not typically appreciative of the empowerment of Mecklenburg. However, since Karl Leopold had no son to succeed him, Karl Leopold suggested marrying his only daughter, Elisabeth Katharina Christine, to Friedrich Wilhelm I's heir, Fritz. Using that marriage, Friedrich Wilhelm I could try to claim Mecklenburg-Schwerin for Prussia upon the death of Karl Leopold. As a consequence, Friedrich Wilhelm I became much more favorable to Mecklenburg-Schwerin's claims to Wismar and Lauenburg, which Friedrich Wilhelm I imagined his son would later inherit. At the same time, Karl Leopold was courted by George II who proposed a marriage between his heir, Prince Frederick, and Elisabeth Katharina Christine with the same intentions as Friedrich Wilhelm I. Before either of these proposals could be finalized, Seckendorff caught wind of them. To put an end to these plots, Seckendorff first informed the Prussians and British of the double-dealing of Karl Leopold to sour their relations with Karl Leopold and then threatened the isolated duke with a Reichsexecution if he did not comply with the Emperor's wishes.

Even though both the Hohenzollern-Hanoverian and Mecklenburger matches fell apart quickly, their existence did cause alarm for the Russians and Hapsburgs. With the potential of the Viennese Alliance being broken apart, there was pressure on Menshikov and Osterman to Charles VI and Sinzendorf to bring an urgent end to the war. Fortunately, Menshikov had expected difficulties in the negotiations and had already been planning accordingly. In northern Germany, Charles Frederick detached himself from Peter Lacy's army in Schleswig and invaded the undefended Duchy of Oldenburg. Meanwhile, in the Baltic, Russian soldiers landed on the western coast of the Gulf of Bothnia and Major General Henrik Magnus Buddenbrock was attacked at and pushed out of Kajaneborg. These attacks served as a strong reminder that Russia alone was a scary beast and through its leadership, the Viennese Alliance had won several decisive victories over the Hanoverians. Furthermore, the attacks threatened to add more prizes to the already immense set of Viennese conquests, which would mean even more bargaining for the Viennese Alliance. Additionally, for Menshikov, these attacks had the added bonus of preventing both Charles Frederick and Marshal Golitsyn from returning to Saint Petersburg. Both generals had planned to do so due to the lull in fighting and the prospect of peace but once Menshikov, the Generalissimus of the Russian Empire, ordered them to go on the offensive they were forced to comply. for this reason, neither Charles Frederick nor Marshal Golitsyn could join the intrigues revolving around the fading Empress Catherine and the question of who would succeed her.

These attacks succeeded in making the Hanoverian Alliance anxious and more willing to make concessions to the Viennese Alliance. However, Cardinal Fleury felt that accepting the Pragmatic Sanction was a much greater concession than the Russians were willing to consider it. Through acceptance of this succession law, the French damaged their ability to negotiate with Elector Charles Albert of Bavaria and Augustus the Strong, who both had claims toward the Hapsburg dominion and had been resistant toward the Pragmatic Sanction. Additionally, if France sought to keep Spain away from friendship with the Hapsburgs then it was best to make them look toward Hapsburg lands with envy. Townshend and George II shared Cardinal Fleury's reluctance to accept the Pragmatic Sanction for much the same reason. Additionally, the Russian and Imperial proposals to take Bremen-Verden away from Brunswick-Luneburg seriously endangered Britain's ability to support and protect Brunswick-Luneburg in future wars so George II was adamantly opposed to the idea. However, George II struggled to get Frederik IV to consent to give up his Duchy of Oldenburg so that Britain could keep Bremen-Verden, especially when the prevailing sentiment in Copenhagen was that if Denmark should lose Holstein then Brunswick-Luneburg should lose Bremen-Verden as Denmark's consent to Brunswick-Luneburg gaining Bremen-Verden had been conditioned upon Denmark gaining Holstein.

An additional reason for the French and British reluctance to make final terms with the Viennese Alliance was that they began to sense the possibility of chaos in Russia upon Catherine's death. Despite Menshikov still being Russia's preeminent figure, France's agents in St. Petersburg had taken note of the growing strength of Menshikov's opposition. As mentioned earlier, in Menshikov's absence the aristocratic Golitsyns and Dolgorukovs had risen to a challenging position. Also, a Holstein party solidified in the Russian court under Pyotr Tolstoy. In the past, Tolstoy feared that his role in capturing Tsarevitch Alexei and bringing him to Peter the Great to be killed would give cause to Alexei's son, Grand Duke Peter, to seek revenge against Tolstoy. This ear had brought Tolstoy to ask Catherine to make one of her daughters, Anne or Elizabeth, her heir. However, she had previously promised to make Grand Duke Peter her heir and refused to go back on her word. Yet as Catherine's health and mental facilities left her and left the succession shrouded in uncertainty, Tolstoy felt that he still had a chance to bring one of Catherine's daughters to the throne. Tolstoy preferred Elizabeth, Catherine's younger daughter since Anne's husband, Charles Frederick had proven himself a little too adept at navigating court intrigues for Tolstoy's comfort. Other members of the court of St. Petersburg supported the idea of circumventing Peter Alexeyevich's rise and Menshikov's continued supremacy but they believed that Catherine's first daughter, Anne, should succeed to the throne as Anne was seen as the better daughter. Furthermore, Anne had given birth to a son, Charles Peter [5]. This uncertainty and factionalization over the Russian succession allowed the Hanoverian Alliance to envision a future in which more favorable terms could be found.

Under these conditions, the French and British became liable to delay and dawdle in their negotiations. However, at the urgings of Menshikov, Osterman decided to put a definitive end to negotiations. as one of Europe's premier statesmen, Osterman recognized Chavigny and Waldegrave's delaying tactics and the low likelihood of negotiations progressing naturally. Consequently, Osterman played the only card he had left: an ultimatum. Just as Osterman had done at Nystad in 1721, Osterman delivered to Chavigny and Waldegrave a list of articles to conclude the war. If Chavigny and Waldegrave failed to sign the treaty then Osterman promised to cut off all negotiations until the following year. In this action, Osterman was supported by Charles VI and Sinzendorf who were eager to put an end to it all.

The brusque ultimatum knocked both Chavigny and Waldegrave off balance and the ticking clock ensured that they remained so. Without the time to contact their respective leaders of state, the diplomats needed make a decision about peace or war and do so fast. Over the course of the night, Chavigny and Waldegrave discussed the proposed treaty between themselves with the rest of their party in a heated debate. For hours, Waldegrave refused to concede Bremen-Verden under any condition until finally, Chavigny convinced him that there was no way George II would retain Bremen-Verden in an extended war. However, the two diplomats struggled to accept the idea of a Russian Osterland. Although not generals, Chavigny and Waldegrave was smart enough to realize that ceding Osterland to Russia would effectively cede Sweden too since the Russian navy and army could easily descend from Turku and Helsingfors on Stockholm. This capability would make Sweden helpless to Russian aggression and thus make subservient to Russian interests just as Poland-Lithuania was. Yet Chavigny and Waldegrave understood that Russia needed a buffer for Saint Petersburg and that it also needed its considerable war effort to be recognized. Finally, two hours before dawn, Chavigny suggested to and convinced Waldegrave of the idea of separating Osterland from Sweden and giving it to the House of Holstein-Gottorp. In this fashion, a buffer for both Russia and Sweden could be created. With this single amendment in hand, Chavigny and Waldegrave returned to Osterman and Sinzendorf willing to accept the treaty. Presented with this amendment, Osterman had a choice say yes and put an end to the war but risk upsetting Menshikov in the process or say no and continue the war and certainly upset Menshikov in the process. Ultimately, Osterman chose the former option both because it felt that it was the correct move for Russia and also because he wished to serve his own interests by returning to Saint Petersburg before Catherine's death.

The document that Osterman, Sinzendorf, Chavigny, and Waldegrave signed on April 8, 1729, was called the Treaty of Vienna. The treaty's terms were as follows. Every signor of the treaty accepted and guaranteed the Pragmatic Sanction of 1713 and consented to oppose violators of the Pragmatic Sanction. The Kingdom of Sweden ceded its Pomeranian possessions in their entirety, including Rugen, to Prussia, and Wismar to Mecklenburg-Schwerin. The Electorate of Brunswick-Luneburg forfeited the Principality of Calenberg to Brunswick-Wolfenbuttel, the Principality of Grubenhagen to Saxony, the Duchy of Lauenburg to Mecklenburg-Schwerin, and the Duchies of Bremen and Verden to Charles Augustus of Holstein-Gottorp. Denmark ceded Holstein-Gluckstadt and Schleswig south of Danevirke to Charles Frederick and relinquished all its claims to Holstein and the southern slice of Schleswig. Charles Frederick in turn relinquished all his claims to the rest of the Duchy of Schleswig. Sweden separated Osterland and Norrland south of Kajaneborg as the Kingdom of Finland, which was awarded to Charles Frederick. To honor the commitments of Bavaria and Cologne, the Holy Roman Emperor promised to nominate the Prince-Archbishop of Cologne to the position of Prince-Archbishopric of Osnrabruck under the death of Ernest Augustus and to reward Karl Leopold, the Emperor confirmed the lifting of the Reichsexecution against him. Finally, all territory not otherwise discussed was returned to its owner before the war and all prisoners were exchanged.

Among the Hanoverian Alliance, this treaty was accepted with reluctant shame for the most part. In Britain, Compton was convinced by Walpole and Townshend that these terms were the best that could be accomplished and with their help, Compton got the treaty passed through the Commons. Importantly, the treaty avoided the complete cession of Brunswick-Luneburg, which was something for George II to hold on to, and avoided any protections for the Ostend Company, which pleased Britain's merchants. In France, Fleury finally had extricated himself from the wretched war and was glad of it. However, beneath Fleury, there were many generals and politicians who felt France had dishonored itself with its bungled war effort. The Duke of Savoy, Victor Amadeus II, was happy to see no demands made of him but nevertheless felt as if he was a failure for having lost his Sardinian crown. The Dutch Republic was simply happy to end its role in an expensive and pointless war. In Denmark-Norway, Frederik IV was saddened by the loss of Holstein but saw no way to continue the war without Britain's support. Finally, in Sweden, King Fredrik I and Queen Ulrika Eleanora of Sweden struggled to accept the loss of both Pomerania and Finland but were bullied into ratifying the treaty by Arvid Horn and Britain. Horn did not think Sweden had any chance of recovering from the war and worried that if the war went on that Stockholm would be razed. Meanwhile, Britain viewed the cession of Finland as essential to avoiding more concessions in Germany.

Among the members of the Viennese Alliance, there were also some ranged reactions to the final treaty. The Holy Roman Emperor was saddened to see that Sinzendorf and Osterman could not work the Ostend Company into the treaty. However, the acceptance of the Pragmatic Sanction was a significant victory in Emperor Charles VI's eyes, which made the whole war worth it. The Elector of Bavaria, Charles Albert accepted the treaty because they expected further rewards to come from Charles VI down the line perhaps in the form of the Southern Netherlands. Charles Albert's brother, the Prince-Archbishop of Cologne, Clemens August, accepted the treaty since it promised him Osnabruck for his minor war contribution. Augustus the Strong signed the treaty since it did augment his hereditary holdings but also because he was left under the impression by Bestuzhev and Seckendorff that Poland-Lithuania could remain in Wettin hands. Karl Leopold and Augustus Wilhelm were very happy to see their realms greatly expanded for small efforts in the war. Friedrich Wilhelm I was left mainly discontented by Russia and particularly Charles VI's refusal to formally recognize his rights to Julich-Berg. The fact that Friedrich Wilhelm I had not gotten any part of Brunswick-Luneburg was a lesser issue.

Finally, in Russia and among its high circles, the treaty was also received in a mixed fashion. For Menshikov himself, the treaty was a mixed bag. On one hand, the war was ended and Menshikov could focus on Russian politics. On the other, Menshikov had intended to turn Finland into his own private estate but Osterman had ended up giving Finland and a crown to Menshikov's rival Charles Frederick. A small solace to Menshikov was that he could expect Charles Frederick's new occupation as King of Finland to keep him and Anne out of Saint Petersburg. Regarding the rest of the treaty, Menshikov had much to celebrate and made sure that Catherine in her waning days felt the same. Among the Holsteiners, Charles Frederick was perhaps the least excited man to ever be named a king ever as he had desperately wanted Schleswig. Finland was a place that Charles Frederick had no attachment to outside of having Swedish blood in his veins. Furthermore, Charles Frederick had been forced to renounce his claims to Schleswig, which was not necessarily permanent but did signify a setback in Charles Frederick German ambitions. At the same time, Charles Frederick's Russian ambitions were sidelined by being sent to Finland to be crowned as king while Catherine lay on her deathbed. In contrast, Charles Augustus was extremely happy to be given a duchy in his own right for him to rule and for his many siblings to enjoy.

In this manner, Empress Catherine's War finally came to a conclusive end. The war had begun on February 11th, 1727 when Spanish soldiers started a siege against British-held Gibraltar. However, for months this war remained nothing but an Anglo-Spanish conflict until May 23rd of 1727. On that day, the Royal Navy fleet of John Norris engaged the Russian fleet of Fyodor Apraksin in what turned a Baltic blunder. Over the course of the next month, both Great Britain and Russia escalated this naval battle in a full-blown war by calling up their respective allies from the Treaty of Hanover and the Treaty of Vienna. However, importantly, the Kingdom of Prussia chose against fighting on Britain's side and instead joined the Russo-Austro-Spanish alliance. In the first year of the war, the Viennese Alliance won a number of battles both small and large, which handed them the initiative and they never let go. In the second year of the war, the Viennese Alliance struck the Hanoverians hard and devastated them at Munster, Bassignana, Kymmenedalen, and more. These powerful blows shattered the already weak will of the Hanoverian Alliance and made peace an imminent prospect. The first country to quit the war was actually the one to start it, Spain. The Kingdom of Spain quit in glorious fashion as the Treaty of Madrid restored to them Gibraltar and Sardinia and promised one of Spain's sons a northern Italian domain. Over the course of the winter that followed, the illness of Empress Catherine, for whom the war is named, cut back the aggression of Aleksander Menshikov and prompted peace talks. These talks spearheaded by Andrey Osterman ended rather speedily, in under three months, due to the growing pressure caused by Catherine's worsening health and Britain and France's weakening willpower. Ultimately, the Treaty of Vienna put an end to Empress Catherine's War and greatly changed the balance of Northern European politics while also interestingly tying almost all of Europe's powers together in a guarantee of Maria Theresa's rights to the Hapsburg Realm

[1] OTL Vasily Vladimirovich Dolgorukov was promoted to Field Marshal slightly later, Vasily Lukich is merely speeding up the process.
[2] Pavel Yaguzhinshy was in Poland at the beginning of the war as Russia's representative to Sejm, he would likely have been ordered to remain there especially as Russian armies needed to march through Poland-Lithuania.
[3] Historically there was some Prussian interest in Brunswick-Luneburg.
[4] This is George I's OTL will.
[5] The date of the POD seems to line up for the OTL Peter III to still be born. Of course, TTL, Anna has not died giving birth to this son, which will play an important role in his development.

Word Count: 5714

 

[Archduke]

22: Death of the Empress

Grand Duke Peter Alekseevich​

From the very beginning of Empress Catherine I's reign, the question of the succession to the title of Autocrat of All Russia had been settled by naming Grand Duke Peter Alekssevich, son of the murdered Tsarevich Alexei, as heir rather than either of Empress Catherine I's children, Anne or Elizabeth. At first, this concession by Catherine was quite necessary to ensure the obedience of the old aristocracy of Russia, which had little loyalty toward Peter's laundress-turned-wife. However, after Catherine firmly established herself on the Russian throne and Prince Menshikov secured her the loyalty of the army, which she would retain until the day she died, the idea of Catherine altering the succession arose. Despite Catherine's previous promises the succession laws laid down by her late husband, Peter I, made such promises irrelevant. As it stood, Catherine's will named Grand Duke Peter as her heir, but, at any point, she could write a new will and name a new heir as she so wished. However, despite the urgings of Pyotr Tolstoy to make one of her daughters as heir, Catherine stood by her word resolutely and refused to revise her will.

Given the established fact of Grand Duke Peter's role as successor and Catherine's commitment to that fact, there should never have been any doubt about Catherine's succession. However, there was doubt and not a small amount as this doubt warranted international attention and played a role in the negotiation of the Treaty of Vienna. The reason for this doubt was twofold. Firstly, upon the birth of her and Peter I's grandson, Charles Peter, she prominently presented him to the Russian court and bestowed a number of honors upon him including the Orders of Saint Andrew, of Saint Catherine, and of Saint Alexander Nevsky. Afterward, not a single day followed during which Catherine was not with the newborn and his mother, Anne. In every manner, Catherine seemed to love and adore Charles Peter. At the same time, Catherine celebrated Charles Peter's father, Duke Charles Frederick of Holstein-Gottorp. Although Charles Frederick was just one of many foreign rulers and soldiers at the head of Russia's armies, he received much more attention and acclaim from Catherine than any others. Of course, Charles Frederick was not an irrelevant leader in the Russian army and he played a critical role in the victory at Thedinghausen, but his exploits were still given undue praise compared to Maurice of Saxony's, Peter Lacy's, or Menshikov's [1]. This high praise allowed people to believe that Catherine might or even meant to make Anne or Charles Peter her successor.

Although this possibility of a Holstein-Gottorp succession emerged and created doubt about Grand Duke Peter's succession, Catherine's will remained unchanged by the time of her renewed illness and thus left the detractors of the Grand Duke in a cloud of uncertainty. Clueless as to whether Catherine would keep or change her will on her own, parties on both sides of the issue emerged. Obviously, the aristocrats formed the core of the supporters of Grand Duke Peter. These aristocrats included the Lopukhins, Dolgorukovs, and Golitsyns, who for the most part wished to return to more normal Russian politics and to avoid seeing where Catherine's children and their foreign husbands would lead Russia. Surprisingly the leader of this part was Menshikov the former enemy of those aristocrats who had led the effort against Grand Duke Peter's succession in 1725 upon the death of Peter I. The reason for Menshikov's favor toward the Grand Duke, at this point, was that during Catherine's reign, Menshikov had secured a betrothal between his daughter, Maria, and the Grand Duke. Thus, if the Grand Duke ascended the throne, Menshikov could very well become the father-in-law of Russia's autocrat and the grandfather of the next one, which might forever place the Menshikov family at the heart of Russian politics.

On the other side, Pyotr Tolstoy's crimes against Tsarevich Alexei made him certain that there was no place for him in a Russia led by the Grand Duke save for Siberia. Consequently, Tolstoy was in favor of raising one of Catherine's daughters to the throne. Tolstoy was joined by General Ivan Ivanovich Buturlin, who commanded the all-important guards; General Anton Manuilovich Devier, who was Chief of Police; and General Grigory Grigorievich Skornyakov-Pisarev, who was Prosecutor General of the Senate [2]. Altogether this was a powerful collection of men who held in their hands many of the instruments of power in Russia. However, their strength was weaker than it appeared for a number of reasons. First, whereas Buturlin, Devier, and Skornyakov-Pisarev all favored placing Anne or Charles Peter on the throne, Tolstoy preferred Elizabeth. The reason being was that Tolstoy had seen Anne's husband and Charles Peter's father, Charles Frederick, in action as a courtier and was suitably impressed to consider him a foe to be avoided. Although Elizabeth's husband, Charles Augustus, was, for the most part, an unknown quantity, his limited time in the Russian court had shown him to be a much more amiable man whom Tolstoy felt he could deal with more effectively [3]. Unfortunately, both Charles Frederick and Charles Augustus had wisely been kept posted at the front by Menshikov and thus was able to play a role in resolving this division. This division prevented the Holstein party, as it can be called, from having the strength to expand its party to match the raw numbers of aristocrats backing the Grand Duke. Grand Chancellor Gavriil Golovkin, for example, rebuffed Tolstoy's request for support and decided to remain uninvolved in the potential succession dispute [4]. Meanwhile, Andrei Osterman took advantage of his absence from Saint Petersburg to excuse his participation in this dangerous game [5].

Ultimately, as Catherine spoke her last words and ebbed into oblivion on April 24, 1729, she did so without changing her will. Although the adherents of the Holstein party were not admitted to see Catherine and attempt to persuade her to alter the succession as she died, the fact that she did not by herself indicates that she likely would not anyways. Catherine had given her word and adamantly stood by it all the way until the end, nothing Tolstoy might have said would have changed that. Immediately, upon Catherine's death, Tolstoy fled Saint Petersburg without even giving notice to his allies [6]. Without Tolstoy's leadership, Buturlin, Devier, and Skornyakov-Pisarev did not dare try to stop Grand Duke Peter's ascension to the throne as Menshikov had in 1725. Instead, the next morning on April 25, the will of Catherine proclaiming the Grand Duke as the successor to the Russian Empire was read to in front of much of the Russian court peacefully and without interruption. Importantly, the will also decided that if the Grand Duke should die without heirs then Anne and her children should succeed him and following them, Elizabeth and her children. Given that the Grand Duke was merely thirteen years old upon inheriting Russia, a regency council consisting of the members of the Supreme Privy Council and both Catherine's daughters and their husbands was established. Once the reading of this will was finished, the entire Russian court including Anne, Elizabeth, Buturlin, Devier, and Skornyakov-Pisarev kissed the cross to demonstrate their loyalty to the new Emperor Peter II.

For a time, the Russian court was at peace as Menshikov did not engage in reprisals against the Holstein party and did dispute Anne and Elizabeth's presence at the first meeting of the regency council. However, at the funeral of Empress Catherine, Devier acted in an irreverent and ill-behaved manner by laughing, inappropriately grabbing one of Catherine's peasant nieces, Sophia Skovronskaya, and even treating Emperor Peter II roughly. This foolish behavior was perhaps deliberately invited by Menshikov's apparent clemency toward Devier. Whether it was or it was not, Menshikov subsequently used it as an excuse to arrest Devier, Buturlin, Skornyakov-Pisarev, and anyone else suspected of supporting the Holstein succession. Subsequently, these people were tortured for confessions of conspiracy, stripped of their titles and lands, and then sent into exile in Siberia. In the aftermath, the Holstein party was thoroughly dispersed and Peter II's succession seemed to be secured [7]. Without the Holsteins to oppose him, Menshikov clearly was the most important man in Russia and the rest of the regency council seemed almost nominal in nature.

Tolstoy, however, was unaware of this ill fate for his allies and instead traveled to Germany where Charles Frederick and Charles Augustus remained with the Russian army. Tolstoy immediately begged Charles Frederick to use the bonds he had built with Peter Lacy and Maurice of Saxony to take charge of the Russian army and lead it against Menshikov. Even as an ambitious foreigner, Charles Frederick had a good understanding of the Russian court, the Russian army, and his own limitations. Even though Charles Frederick was not yet aware that the Holstein party had fallen, he correctly assumed that long before he arrived in Russia that Menshikov would deal with anyone who supported Charles Frederick. Furthermore, Charles Frederick thought that it was unlikely that he could convince Peter Lacy or Maurice of Saxony to risk their lives and livelihoods to opposed Menshikov, and Charles Frederick thought it was absolutely impossible for him to rally the Russian army of which Menshikov was a true hero of against Menshikov. Thus, Charles Frederick coolly rejected Tolstoy's urgings. Indeed, Charles Frederick was so disinterested in Tolstoy's ploy that he sent Tolstoy on to Kiel to be watched over by his cousin, Adolf Frederick of Holstein-Gottorp [8].

With Tolstoy dismissed and Charles Frederick choosing pragmaticism over ambition, the succession crisis truly was over. However, Menshikov, far away in Saint Petersburg, could not be so certain of that outcome. At the same time, Charles Frederick was uncertain about what Menshikov's intentions toward Charles Frederick were. Although Charles Frederick and Menshikov had established a working relationship during their time on the Supreme Privy Council and in the army together, they were not friends or drinking companions. Neither Charles Frederick or Menshikov could trust the other and both naturally assumed that the other had some plot at hand to discredit, dispose, or depose the other. For this reason, both Charles Frederick and Menshikov spent the succeeding months treading cautiously in respect to one another. Charles Frederick remained with the army of Peter Lacy and slowly marched home with it. This way Charles Frederick could avoid being swept in any plots still playing out in the wake of Catherine's death and also, Charles Frederick avoided making himself look eager to return to Saint Petersburg to challenge Menshikov. Meanwhile, Menshikov avoided showing any disfavor toward Anne and did not interfere with her care of Charles Peter.

This standoff continued for several weeks until finally, Menshikov tired of the game. The reason for Menshikov's patience running short was that Field Marshal Mikhail Mikhailovich Golitsyn and the Russian army in Finland were taking their time returning to Russia and made Menshikov suspect that the Golitsyns might try to break his grip over the Russian government [9]. Although Menshikov correctly assessed that Charles Frederick could not turn the Russian army returning from Germany against him, Menshikov was concerned that Charles Frederick might turn just part of it and introduce the necessary bit of chaos to incentivize and allow a Golitsyn grab for power. To avoid this potentiality, Menshikov decided to break Charles Frederick's band of brothers before it could ever reach Saint Petersburg or even Russia. First, Menshikov offered to lift the ban that Russia had imposed on Maurice of Saxony assuming the title of Duke of Courland, which he had been elected to 1726. The only condition Menshikov had was that Maurice would have to marry Anna Ivanovna to ensure that Russian interests in Courland were protected. Additionally, the marriage would ensure that Anna Ivanovna, a potential claimant to the Russian throne, remained away from Saint Petersburg attending to her new husband. Second, Menshikov brusquely refused Charles Augustus entrance into Russia despite him being named a member of the Regency Council. To avoid Charles Augustus using the excuse of his wife, Elizabeth, being in Saint Petersburg, Menshikov sent Catherine's younger daughter to Courland with little courtesy. Finally, Menshikov ordered Peter Lacy to resume his old post, commanding troops in Livland, outside of Reval.

Even though Charles Frederick had already given up his thoughts of trying to displace Peter II in favor of his own wife and son, Menshikov's measures made sure that such opposition was entirely impossible. Alone and beaten, Charles Frederick finally returned to Saint Petersburg in the summer of 1729 to finally be reunited with his wife and to for the first time lay eyes upon his son. Charles Frederick, however, was not allowed to stay in Saint Petersburg for long. Although Menshikov could not expel Charles Frederick from Russia since he was not only a member of the Supreme Privy Council but its nominal leader, Menshikov made it clear to Charles Frederick that he would make life exceptionally hard for Charles Frederick if he did not exit Saint Petersburg for Finland quickly. Charles Frederick, in turn, offered to do so and to leave Menshikov's rule undisturbed under the condition that the rights and privileges of himself, his wife, and his son were affirmed. Namely, these rights and privileges involved some pensions and annuities due to Charles Frederick and his family including an annual 50,000 pounds payment to Charles Frederick until Schleswig was recovered for him and his family. This was a large bribe but well worth it for Menshikov. As Charles Frederick rode toward his new Kingdom of Finland, he passed Marshal Golitsyn and his army on the road. Although it is doubtful that Marshal Golitsyn ever meant to use his army against Menshikov and most probably was delayed by bad weather and bad roads, the sight of Charles Frederick exiting Russia, defeated and exiled, was a powerful reminder to Marshal Golitsyn that he would be just as helpless against Menshikov if he dared challenge him. Menshikov was supreme and there was doubt about the fact that he was Russia's new ruler even if Peter II wore the crown.

[1] Given Catherine's love for her daughter, Anne, who was her favorite, I expect her to be very attached to Anne's son who historically was born after her death. Also, given the historical honors given by Catherine to Charles Frederick, I imagine she would be very liberal in acknowledging Charles Frederick's military career.
[2] This is the historical Holstein party.
[3] Historically, it was not a question of Anne and Charles Frederick or Elizabeth and Charles Augustus as Charles Augustus had died by this point. However, the minimal information we know about Charles Augustus indicates that he carried himself well during his visit to the Russian court and was able to party and entertain. Although not displaying himself as weak-minded, that sort of amiability is probably preferable to the cold ambition that Charles Frederick displayed. Hence Tolstoy's preference for Elizabeth over Anne in this TL.
[4] Golovkin historically avoided this mess and others during his time, I see no reason that would change.
[5] Historically, Osterman sided with Menshikov. However, in this timeline, Osterman is still in Vienna at this point settling affairs with the Hapsburgs. Given that absence from Saint Petersburg, I think Osterman would excuse himself from the succession issue so that he could come out on top no matter who wins in Saint Petersburg. Osterman historically avoided difficult issues all the time.
[6] Historically, Tolstoy did not flee and ended up arrested and exiled to Siberia. Here, Tolstoy is fleeing because Charles Frederick is abroad in Germany and Tolstoy is fleeing to him.
[7] This parallels the historical collapse of the Holstein party as I do not see Devier not being a fool at Catherine's funeral, it was simply his personality.
[8] Historically upon the death of Catherine without any alteration to her will, Charles Frederick immediately noted that the Holstein succession was dead as an idea and afterward Charles Frederick offered no opposition to Grand Duke Peter's succession and Menshikov's leadership. Charles Frederick although ambitious was also pragmatic enough to avoid pursuing an unwinnable challenge against Menshikov. Although Charles Frederick is more influential in Russian politics in this timeline, so is Menshikov. Thus, Charles Frederick like OTL submits to the succession of Grand Duke Peter.
[9] During the 1725 palace coup that placed Catherine on the throne over Grand Duke Peter, Golitsyn was similarly in charge of an army on the border and was similarly suspected of intending to use that army against Menshikov and his allies. Indeed, Golitsyn was asked to return to Saint Petersburg via a fast messenger who neglected to tell him that Peter I had died so that by the time Golitsyn found out about the death of Peter I he had already departed from his army and could do nothing to oppose Menshikov. It is debatable that Golitsyn actually would have done anything but the suspicion that he might existed and resulted in action.

Word Count: 2835

 

[Archduke]

23: Return of the King

Sir Robert Walpole​

When negotiations in Vienna finally resulted in a signed peace treaty, King George II of Great Britain was beyond distraught at terms that Waldegrave had agreed to. According to the Treaty of Vienna, George II's birthplace, the Electorate of Brunswick-Luneburg was to be stripped of Calenburg, Grubenhagen, Lauenburg, Bremen, Verden, and Osnabruck. These cessions included not only several of Brunswick-Luneburg's most recent acquisitions but also its heartland, Calenburg. Although legally the treaty left the electorate with its independence and George II as its ruler, it certainly did not seem like that to George II. As it stood the treaty left Brunswick-Luneburg's capital, Hanover, within literal sight of the border with Brunswick-Wolfenbuttel, a state that had recently shown its true colors as an ambitious opportunist rather than a loyal scion of the House of Hanover. Meanwhile, the critical connection with Britain and its armies and navies had been severed. Instead, the Bremish ports and their lesser Lauenburger counterparts had been transferred to the certainly hostile Holstein-Gottorpers and the absolutely untrustworthy Duke Karl Leopold of Mecklenburg-Schwerin. In practically every direction, Brunswick-Luneburg encountered enemies, the singular means of escape left to the ninth electorate was through Denmark-Norway's Duchy of Oldenburg. In the wake of such a calamitous peace, George II finally parted from his army in Schleswig and sailed back to Britain. Along the way, George II encountered a strong storm, which forced George II to remain at Heligoland for three days before resuming his voyage [1].

When George II finally reached Britain it was to a cold and disdainful reception. The British people had celebrated George II's ascension to the throne less than two years earlier as a welcome change from the overtly German, distant, and rude reign of George I [2]. To them, George II was supposed to be an attentive British ruler who put the needs of Britain over those of Germany [3]. Instead, before even three months had elapsed, George II flew from Britain for Brunswick-Luneburg just as his father had done so many times before. Unlike his father, George II took with him 20,000 British soldiers to fight for Brunswick-Luneburg's defense rather than the interests of Britain in the Low Countries, Mediterranean, and even the forsaken Americas. This unwanted adventure failed to stop the Russian hordes from overrunning Brunswick-Luneburg and in the process lost Britain an army's worth of men. Rather than the British king that they had wanted, the British people had ended up with even more committed German. Thus, for George II to be meant by muted cheers, a few jeers, and many glares when he returned to Britain was not surprising [4].

The first order of business for George II was to try to cajole his prime minister, Sir Spencer Compton, into rousing the parliament into continuing the war rather than accept the humiliation that was the Treaty of Vienna [5]. However, by this point, Compton had been worn down and broken by the hardships of leadership in war and meekly responded that he could not [6]. This weakness did nothing to endear Compton to George II. Indeed, George II immediately and viciously berated Compton until the man was nothing more than snivels and tears. At this point, Compton's tenure as prime minister was effectively over, but George II could not just dismiss Compton in hopes that the next prime minister would be any more favorable to the war. The Commons were against the war and George II understood that, so before he could turn Compton out he needed to select a replacement that could turn the Commons and then turn around the war. For this purpose, George II turned to Sir Robert Walpole and Lord Charles Townshend and offered each of them the leadership of the government but this effort came in vain as neither thought a continued war was viable nor was either of them desperate enough to even try [7]. Instead, after weeks of delay, George II finally was convinced by his persistent wife, Caroline of Ansbach, to accept the painful partition of Brunswick-Luneburg and ratify the Treaty of Vienna. Caroline herself was convinced of the cause of peace by Walpole who had spent the past two years endearing himself to the Queen since he understood that she held the true power behind the throne [8].

With the ratification of Vienna, George II could no longer deny the severity of his defeats. Ever since George II's brave showing at Oudenaarde that had won him the praise of the Duke of Marlborough, George II had thought of himself as a good soldier who could have accomplished so much more if his father had not taken him away from the front out of jealously. However, George II's command of the Hanoverian forces during Empress Catherine's War had proven anything but that. Whatever skill George II had as a minor commander had not transferred whatsoever into his first strategic command [9]. Despite all George II's efforts, he had never once stopped the Viennese armies. He had been defeated by Peter Lacy at Biennenbuttel, by Charles Frederick at Thedinghausen, and by Menshikov at Munster. Altogether those victories added up to the total subjugation of his birthplace. Nothing George II had done had even fazed the Viennese Alliance, they had thrashed him meticulously and completely. All of this combined to crush the spirit of George II for some time.

George II was not the only one coming to terms with the reality of Empress Catherine's War. The British nation as a whole was shaken by the event. The last war that Britain had fought, the War of the Quadruple Alliance, was an easy and quick victory in which both the Royal Navy and British army had acquitted themselves admirably. Before that, Britain had challenged Louis XIV's quest for European hegemony and defeated the invincible French armies at Blenheim, Ramillies, Oudenaarde, and Malplaquet under the leadership of the incredible Marlborough. Yet in this most recent war against the Russo-German-Spanish coalition, the British did not have a single victory to show for themselves, not on land or even at sea. On land, the once sturdy British army had not just been overwhelmed by great numbers but had been out-led and out-soldiered. Without Marlborough, the British generals like Argyll and Cardigan were unimpressive and unintimidating. They allowed themselves to be handled not merely by the heroes of the Great Northern War, Menshikov and Lacy, but also by relatively inexperienced and unknown quantities in the form of Maurice of Saxony and Charles Frederick. At the same time, the soldiers that formed the British army seemed lackluster, lacking the training to match up against the Prussians, the viciousness to confront the Russians, or the mettle to face off against the Saxons. As much as politicians and tavern folk liked to discuss this dramatic decline in the performance and ability of the British army, not one of them had a solution for what to do about it.

Far more worrying than the abuse dealt to the British army was that suffered by the Royal Navy. Across the course of two years, the Royal Navy had suffered three distinct disasters at the Battle of Osel, the Caribbean campaign, and the Battle of Kymmenedalen. At Osel, the Royal Navy had stumbled into the Russian navy headfirst and come out worst for it. In the Caribbean, three different commands and thousands of sailors had died only to delay one Spanish treasure fleet and prevent a second from setting sail. Although one might try to excuse the first disaster on a lack of preparedness and the second on disease, no such excuse existed for the third disaster. At Kymmenedalen, the Royal Navy was challenged by the Russian navy and defeated in a frank and decisive manner. For Britain's wooden walls to be battered by a backward, Asiatic country that barely had a coastline let alone a navy was horrifying and brought back memories of the days when the French and Dutch menaced Britain's coastline. If the Russians could do it then what would stop the French and Dutch if they turned against Britain? The worst part of all for Britain was that it did not blame Brunswick-Luneburg for the war and its defeat. Although the British railed against George II and Compton for their incompetence, the Royal Navy had been responsible for starting the war, and never once did it redeem itself. For Godsake, the navy even let Gibraltar fall. Altogether, this sense of unmitigated defeat and hopelessness about the next war put the country in a forlorn and sour mood.

The sole bright spot for the defeated nation were the tales of Prince Frederick, the Griff of Hanover. At Biennenbuttel, Thedinghausen, and Munster, Griff had acquitted himself honorably and fought with distinction, and most importantly, outside of the first battle, Griff had fought as a British officer, in a British uniform, alongside British soldiers. This image was in direct contrast to that of George II who had abandoned his British uniform for a Brunswicker one as soon as he arrived in his homeland, which the British took offense at. At the same time, Griff had the distinction of being captured in combat rather than in flight, which allowed Tory writers such as Jonathan Swift and Alexander Pope to paint Griff as a stalwart soldier enduring the hardships of cold imprisonment [10]. Griff was the sacrificial lamb for the mistakes of his father, George II, and Compton, which completely ignored the generous treatment and liberty given to him by his captors. Indeed, Griff had been flirting with a future bride rather than starving in a dank prison chained to a wall. Despite this deviation from reality, the absent prince became a hugely popular figure in Britain. In essence, Griff was seen as a young, dashing, hopefully-British prince in contrast to the old, fat, and German king, George II, which reflected the public favor that George II had enjoyed when he was the Prince of Wales.

Although Griff's popularity earned him the hearts of thousands of blushing maids and the respect of numerous lords in Britain, it did nothing to earn him the love of his father. Instead, George II was intensely jealous of the people's celebrating of Griff, especially when George II was the butt of insulting jokes and poems. Although George II had gained some respect for Griff's military service and fortitude, the constant admiration of those accomplishments by others served to lessen George II's own respect for Griff. The overblown and outside lionization of Griff made Griff's true accomplishments seem small in comparison in George II's eyes. In truth, Griff was a fair soldier but he was not the absolute hero who the people wanted him to be and George II knew that. For this reason, George II took to minimizing his son's service and even denouncing it whenever anyone dared to bring it up, even when they did so in an effort to compliment George II. This behavior mimicked George II's belittling of Queen Caroline whenever someone appreciated her intelligence or questioned George II's [11]. Quickly enough, the courtiers of London realized that if they wished to advance in society and retain the favor of George II that casting Griff in a positive light was not to their benefit. The Tories as an ever-present torn in George II's side praised Griff nevertheless but others quieted down.

Once George II accepted the Treaty of Vienna and thus secured the release of Griff from captivity, the extent of George II's animosity toward his eldest son and heir was made clear when George II failed to call forth Griff to Britain or make any plans in that regard. Additionally, George II failed to make any moves toward proclaiming Griff as the Prince of Wales, which was his rightful title. At first, this behavior was assumed to be in preparation for naming Griff as Regent of Brunswick-Luneburg, which would make sense given his familiarity with the electorate and his role in managing its court before the war. However, this was not the case. Rather than making Griff regent, George II established a council of Brunswick nobility to govern Brunswick-Luneburg in his absence and noticeably did not provide Griff any official or unofficial role on this council. Thus, George II contrived to keep Griff out of Britain while also making him powerless in Brunswick-Luneburg. The latter goal was further evidenced by the fact that George II did not provide any funds for Griff's many expenses or immense debt. Instead, George II kept Griff impoverished and with only limited means. Indeed, when Griff's great-uncle, Ernest Augustus, Archbishop of Osnabruck, passed away, George II tore up the will and took all of Ernest Augustus' possession for himself, which deprived Griff of any potential inheritance. Considering that Griff was the closest person that Ernest Augustus had to a son, it was suspected that Ernest Augustus left most of his possessions to Griff [12]. Overall, George II seemed determined to let Griff wallow in Brunswick-Luneburg until he was either forgotten or dead [13].

With the treaty ratified, George II no longer had no need for Compton and finally accepted his long-requested resignation. Although Compton certainly was energetic and at times cunning, he lacked the resolve and the true intelligence needed to manage Britain and the Commons, especially during a war. In the days following Compton's resignation there was a brief period of the parliament lacking a prime minister; however, at no point did anyone doubt that Walpole would be the next prime minister. Since Walpole's dismissal in 1727 due to George II and Caroline's personal distaste for him, Walpole had gained Caroline's favor and George II's tolerance. At the same time, the disloyalty that many Whigs held toward Walpole in 1727 had since been swept aside by Compton's demonstration of how disastrous a non-Walpole led Britain was. Thus, after a few days of leaderlessness, George II summoned Walpole and asked him to take the reins of government. However, Walpole did not come to power alone. Alongside Walpole, Townshend returned as his partner in leadership similar to how Walpole and Townshend had shared control of the government under George I. Townshend was able to reclaim this position despite Caroline's dislike for him and Townshend's retaining his post as Secretary of State of the Northern Department under Compton after Walpole's dismissal in 1727. The reason that Townshend could overcome these obstacles was that he enjoyed great favor from George II as the strongest advocate against the Hapsburgs. Even though the Hapsburgs had ended up with a slice of Brunswick-Luneburg, George II still blamed them for arranging the Viennese Alliance and for overseeing the partition of Brunswick-Luneburg. Even if doing so was contrary to British interests, George II was fiercely opposed to reconciling with the Hapsburgs as Walpole wanted to. Instead, George II wanted revenge or justice for the Hapsburg crimes against Brunswick-Luneburg. So long as George II held strongly to these sentiments, Townshend would be ensured a place at the head of the government and Walpole would be forced to remain allied to Townshend and his policies [14].

In the wake of the peace and Walpole's return to leadership, the most important issue of the British parliament's agenda was updating the Civil List, or the funds raised for the royal family's welfare. Typically establishing the Civil List is one of the first priorities handled after a transition in monarchs. However, since the transition between George and George II took place during the midst of war breaking out the issue of the Civil List was tabled so that parliamentary debates could focus on the subject of the war. Having returned home, George II found the means available to him to be lacking and without the war to occupy the parliament's attention, George II thought that it was an appropriate time to ask for a revision of the Civil List. The revision suggested by Walpole would replace George I's Civil List of 700,000 pounds awarded to the King and 100,000 pounds given directly to the Prince of Wales with 800,000 pounds for the King, 100,000 pounds for the Prince of Wales but given to the King to distribute to the Prince, and 100,000 pounds for the Queen [15]. In total, an increase of 200,000 pounds for the royal family was proposed with the Prince of Wales' budget being put in the hands of the King. Unsurprisingly, William Shippen, a Tory known for his frank honesty, rose in opposition and pointed out that Queen Anne had asked for a much smaller Civil List and even given some of that List back to the British people. In reply, Walpole pointed out that George II had a family of two sons and four daughters whereas Queen Anne did not [16]. This answer elicited an interruption from William Pulteney, who said"Where is our dear Prince of Wales?" to the cheers of many Tories and even a few Whigs [17]. Nevertheless, when the Civil List proposal was put to a vote it passed with a healthy majority as confirmation and the Whigs and Walpole's dominance over the Parliament [18].

Regarding the question of "Where is our Prince of Wales?", at the time there was in fact no Prince of Wales since George II had been withholding the title from his son, Griff. Instead, all Griff could call himself was the Prince of Brunswick-Luneburg for what little that title was worth as Griff no longer had any role in the governance of Brunswick-Luneburg, not even a ceremonial one as the representative of the House of Hanover. Instead, Griff was an abandoned prince who was languishing in Hanover while he eagerly awaited his father's beckon to join him and a family that he barely knew after fifteen years of separation. However, following Griff's release weeks passed without any invitation to Britain and Griff's letters to his father and his family got scant replies because his father despised him and the rest of his family did know him [19]. To make matters worse, George II took advantage of the peace to strip Griff of his army command and then did not gain him so much of shilling of the 100,000 pounds entitled to him by the Civil List. As a consequence, Griff was without an occupation or with only the 8,000 crown allowance given to him as the Prince of Brunswick-Luneburg. Left alone and adrift in Hanover, Griff reverted to his old habits of gambling, enjoying the embrace of women, both hired and not, and socializing with the common folk [20]. In this manner, Griff carried on through the solitude of spring and summer of 1729. However, Griff's service in the army and his encounter with Anna Karolina Orzelska had opened Griff up to more of the world and he wanted to experience it. Above all, Griff wanted to marry the beautiful Princess Wilhelmine of Prussia, who he had felt as if he was betrothed to for years, and ever since meeting her at Herrenhausen could think of no woman but her.

[1] Storms in the southern North Sea were a frequent occurrence and George II encountered more than once in his several trips between Britain and Brunswick-Luneburg. This storm serves as a representative of this common phenomenon.
[2] OTL this is how the British (at least the Whigs) viewed the transition of kings.
[3] George II had painted himself deliberately as a British individual while he was Prince of Wales in direct contrast to his father's Germanness.
[4] In OTL the British people turned against George II over time as he frequented Brunswick-Luneburg and demonstrated his favor to its concerns. Here, the turn occurs much earlier and is severe from the beginning due to the much more tangible and significant consequences of George II's German preferences.
[5] As far as I am aware ratification power or final ratification power lies with George II, which means that even if the parliament accepts the treaty that George II could technically not. However, with the parliament's power of the pursue, George II knows that he needs parliament's support and funding to continue the war.
[6] Again Compton was not the strongest character.
[7] Walpole may be the best statesman in Britain at the time but even he cannot convince the Commons to continue the war. Meanwhile, both Walpole and Townshend are certain that after the disaster that was Compton's ministry that they will be leading members of the next ministry, so they do not need to gamble on going pro-war.
[8] Caroline of Ansbach was very influential over George II and Walpole took advantage of that by becoming allies with her and ruling George II with her help.
[9] Someone suggested that George II might have become a competent tactical commander and to be fair in this timeline he has not been charged with any previous tactical mistakes. More so his defeats have been the result of the enemy outsmarting him rather than him making a mistake that costs him the battle. However, George II certainly seemed to lack in the strategic department, which his Mainz Campaign during the OTL War of the Austrian Succession is certainly proof of. He dangerously exposed his army and its supply lines for a minor political objective, which he did not even accomplish, and almost got punished by having his entire army cut off and encircled. Only major mistakes (both tactical and strategic) on the part of the French saved George II's army. By this, I am referring to the Battle of Dettingen but also the larger issue of de Broglie never reuniting with Noailles to just force George II's surrender without the need for a battle.
[10] Tory writers were a major source of anti-government, anti-Hanoverian propaganda.
[11] This is George II's OTL behavior toward his wife in public.
[12] OTL George II tore up Ernest Augustus' will and deprived Frederick of Wales and Sophia Dorothea of their expected inheritance.
[13] My biggest issue with Look to the West is that it conveniently seems to forget that George II rather than Frederick of Wales was the issue. Whereas, Frederick of Wales treated George II with every possible respect upon their first encounter and for a good time after that, George II was disdainful from the beginning and quickly became contemptuous. Although Look to the West fails to mention this, Frederick of Wales was not even invited to the coronation of George II, because George II at the time had still refused to bring Frederick to Britain. Not until more than a year after the coronation was Frederick brought to Britain. All of this occurred in a world in which George II only disliked his son because he did not know him and feared him as a rival. In a world in which Frederick and George II had interacted and Frederick had exposed his predilection toward the arts while also making himself into an easy, formidable political rival, I expect George II to do much worst than purposely ignore his son.
[14] In OTL George II viewed Townshend as a relic of his father's reign and did not like him for that reason. Townshend unlike Walpole never turned that opinion around and eventually got muscled out of the government by Walpole. Here, Townshend is the right man at the right time. He is the anti-Hapsburg advocate and George II wants to be anti-Hapsburg right now despite George II understanding that such a strategy is not entirely beneficial to Britain. So in this case, Townshend is actually a needed tool for George II and will have George II's support, so long as they both remain on the same side of European foreign policy.
[15] This proposal is slightly than OTL which had 830,000 pounds going to the King. That 30,000 pound difference is something that I attribute to Walpole finding the extra money to add a little more money and gain a little more favor. With the burden of the war debt, I do not think that Walpole will find that extra money and instead will just go for a round number just as he did for the Queen's sum.
[16] This is the OTL interaction between Walpole and Shippen over the Civil List. I see Shippen as still raising an issue with the List so I kept the exchange.
[17] In OTL no one backed up Shippen due to George II's popularity at the time and Walpole's strength. Here George II is far less popular and Walpole is a little more vulnerable so there is some support for Shippen.
[18] In OTL the vote was practically unanimous, here it still passes but there is able resistance. Importantly, the Prince of Wales' money is paid to the king for the king to then distribute to the Prince, which means that George II controls the purse strings for Prince Frederick.
[19] Prince Frederick barely received letters from Britain with most of them either coming before the birth of George William when Frederick was the only son of George II or at the time of George I's death since Frederick and Ernest Augustus were the only two family members at George I's funeral.
[20] These were the pastimes attributed to Prince Frederick in Brunswick-Luneburg.

Word Count: 4198

 

[Archduke]

24: The Ascendancy of Menshikov

Ivan Alekseevich Dolgorukov​

After the end of Empress Catherine's War and the death of its namesake, Russia endured a summer of suspense as the Holstein party, Golitsyns, and Prince Aleksander Menshikov all maneuvered for preeminence in the Russian Empire. Despite Charles Frederick of Holstein Gottorp and Marshal Mikhail Mikhailovich Golitsyn both being at the head of armies at the summer's start, neither of them were able to do anything to prevent Menshikov from securing full control of Russia. Charles Frederick saw his entire Holstein party completely dissipated by Menshikov's outmaneuvering of Peter Tolstoy, bribing of Maurice of Saxony, redeployment of Peter Lacy, and exile of Elizabeth Petrovna. By the time Charles Frederick reached Saint Petersburg, he was not received as a returning hero or even an esteemed guest; instead, he was a foreigner trespassing in Russian history. Days later, Charles Frederick, his wife, Anne Petrovna, and his son, Charles Peter, were all sent packing to their consolidation prize of Finland with only some kopeks to show for the formidable place in Russian society that they had held just months before. Marshal Golitsyn avoided such punishment due to his Russian nationality and the importance of him and his brothers, Prince Dmitry Mikhailovich Golitsyn and Admiral Mikhail Mikhailovich Golitsyn, as counterweights to the Dolgorukov family. Nevertheless, Charles Frederick's dramatic downfall made it obvious to Marshal Golitsyn and his brothers that Menshikov's power was not to be challenged thoughtlessly. To further demonstrate that fact, Menshikov stripped Catherine's other favorite, Alexei Vasilyevich Makarov, of his positions and exiled him to Moscow, the abandoned capital of Russia. There, in Moscow, Makarov assumed the presidency of the Collegium of State Income, a well-paying but powerless post. Meanwhile, Pavel Ivanovich Yaguzhinsky, a personal nemesis of Menshikov, lost his place as Russia's ambassador to the Polish Sejm, and was instead given some pointless military command in Ukraine. Finally, Baron Pyotr Pavlovich Shafirov's effort to return to Russian politics was bluntly refused and he was dispatched to Arkhangelsk "to look after the whale fisheries" [1].

In spite of Charles Frederick's unceremonious expulsion from the Russian Empire, he remained an official member of the Supreme Privy Council. Indeed, as King of Finland, Charles Frederick was formally the head of the Council by the precedence of rank. However, as indicated before, Charles Frederick was completely powerless in Russian politics and his council seat remained empty as a consequence. Charles Frederick's departure did not mark the only change to the composition of the Council. In the wake of Tolstoy's disgrace and flight, he was stripped of his titles and his place on the Council. Shortly after, the hero of Kymmenedalen, General Admiral Fyodor Apraksin, had passed away of old age and exhaustion in August 1729, which opened up his seat as well [2]. Unfortunately for Menshikov, his hard-nosed and hard-headed nature had left him with few respectable friends to replace either Tolstoy or Apraksin. The only people with the power to warrant a seat on the Council were instead rivals of Menshikov in the form of the aristocratic Golitsyns and Dolgorukovs. Rather than feed the ambitions and empower the plans of those rivals, Menshikov chose against replacing either Tolstoy or Apraksin's seat. Instead, Menshikov allowed the Council to revert to its previous membership of seven councilors rather than its short-lived count of nine. Even though Menshikov understood that failing to provide either the Golitsyns or Dolgorukovs with even one additional seat would only add to their enmity against him. However, Menshikov felt that his supremacy was secure enough to shake off the displease of the Golitsyns and Dolgorukovs [3]. As a consequence, the Supreme Privy Council remained limited to Menshikov, Count Gavriil Ivanovich Golovkin, Prince Dmitry Mikhailovich Golitsyn, Baron Andrei Ivanovich Osterman, Prince Vasily Lukich Dolgorukov, Marshal Golitsyn, and the absent Charles Frederick.

The reason that Menshikov could afford to gamble with the affections of the Golitsyns, Dolgorukovs, and other powerful aristocratic families was twofold. First, Menshikov's victories in Empress Catherine's War had elevated him to the pedestal of Russian military legends rather than being a secondary hero of the Great Northern War. The army and especially Preobrazhensky and Semyonovsky Guards acknowledged that shift and revered Menshikov as a consequence. Menshikov's effortless exile of the Guards' commander, Ivan Ivanovich Buturlin, was proof of this reverence [4]. So long as the Guards followed Menshikov he could also threaten any challenge to his power with a reprisal from the Guards, which cowed many aristocrats [5]. The second reason was that Menshikov had gained a connection to a power even higher than that of the aristocrats. According to stipulations for Peter II's succession, the Autocrat of All Russia had been promised as the future husband of Menshikov's daughter, Maria, which in turn would make Menshikov the father-in-law to the emperor and an ancestor to all the succeeding emperors [6]. Of course, the aristocrats hated the idea of Menshikov and his family being tied directly to the Romanov family. Not necessarily because of Menshikov's low birth but because the other families themselves wished to enjoy the same relationship to the Romanovs. Despite this sentiment, the aristocrats failed to stop Menshikov from formally announcing the engagement of Peter II and Maria Menshikova in August 1729 [7]. Most likely the aristocrats did not resist due to their fear of the Guards. Additionally, Peter II's tender age of thirteen might prevent a marriage for years and in the meantime, the aristocrats could build up their strength before making any moves against Menshikov. Nevertheless, so long as the engagement stood, Maria was in line to be the next Empress of Russia and afterward, Menshikov would be guaranteed the favored spot in Russian politics until the end of his days.

In this all-powerful position, Menshikov embarked on a campaign of amending the reforms of Peter I. Whereas some aristocrats hated all of Peter I's reforms and programs due to their draconian and overbearing nature and wished to reverse many of them, Menshikov had been an avid supporter of Peter I's program to modernize Russia. Indeed, Menshikov had been involved in Peter I's costly venture to build a canal that connected the Volga River with the Baltic Sea, and Menshikov had been of the greatest patrons of Saint Petersburg's development. Even then, Menshikov understood that his deceased patron's policies had not been without flaws and many of these reforms had failed [8]. Some reforms had not gone far enough, others had gone too far, and some had gone in the wrong direction altogether. As a consequence, Menshikov viewed his task as fixing Peter I's policies to cultivate the further progress of Russia. Of course, these goals were not unselfish. Now that Menshikov had firmly etched his name into the military annals of Russian history with his German victories, Menshikov sought to further his own legacy by adding his own reforms to succeed those of Peter I. Not only did Menshikov want to be remembered as a great general of Russia but also as a great politician and leader. Furthermore, a redesign of government policies would mean adjusting the government's ledgers, which would provide the opportunity for more than a few coins to end up in Menshikov's hands [9].

The first of these reforms involved revising the Russian relationship with the Zaporozhian Host. In the wake of Ivan Mazepa's rebellion against Russia and Peter I's victory in the Great Northern War, the Cossacks had lost much of their autonomy and been subjected to the authority of the Little Russian Collegium. The Cossacks did not appreciate this new, invasive bureaucracy and complained about it incessantly. Discontent with more direct Russian rule even led to another conspiracy against Russia, which Pavlo Polubotok, Ivan Mazepa's successor, organized. Of course, this conspiracy like all those Cossack plots before it failed and ended in his imprisonment and death. Despite the Cossack distaste for this heavy-handed Russian rule, Danylo Apostol, the new Cossack leader, still answered Menshikov's call to arms and brought thousands of Cossacks to join the Russian campaigns in Germany and Finland during Empress Catherine's War. Ultimately, the Cossacks ended up playing a major role in the Russian victories at Munster and Bispingen. Due to this notable act of loyalty, Danylo Apostol felt that it was reasonable to ask for the tyranny of the Little Russian Collegium to be ended and for the autonomous Hetmanate of the Cossacks to be restored [10]. On the other side, Menshikov recognized the grievances of the Cossacks and their importance to Russia's military, which made him inclined to treat with them. However, the biggest motivation for Menshikov to amend the Russo-Cossack relationship was the enormous expense incurred by the Little Russian Collegium, which was one that Menshikov wished to do away with to pay off the debts produced by his expensive campaign of self-aggrandizement in Germany [11].

The reform that resulted from the talks between Apostol and Menshikov proved to be a comprehensive redefinition of the Russo-Cossack relationship. Under this reform, the Little Russian Collegium was abolished and the Hetmanate was recreated. However, the Hetmanate would not have any capacity to conduct its own foreign affairs and the nomination and election of the hetman was subject to the approval of the Russian emperor. The only foreign issue that the Hetmanate might involve itself in was in minor border disputes with the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth and the Crimean Khanate, but these disputes were only to be negotiated in the presence of a special commissioner sent by the emperor. In return for officially abandoning their ability to conduct diplomacy, the Cossacks regained the autonomy of their laws and customs. The Russian Empire agreed to allow the foremen, atamans, and city councils to act as the judicial system and enforcement mechanism of the region as they did before. In these courts, the rule of "where there are three Cossacks, there two thirds must judge" was reinstated. The General Court of Little Russia would consist of three Russians and three Cossacks. Should an individual remain unsatisfied they could then appeal to the Hetman and after him to the emperor. Additionally, the Russian Empire guaranteed the rights of the Little Russians and prohibited the settlement of peasants from Great Russia to Little Russia. However, Russians from both regions were given equal rights to buy land, which also meant protecting Little Russians from having their land seized without payment. On the matter of minorities in Little Russia, Jews were prohibited from settling in the region but were allowed to trade, and the Russian Empire refused to use its own resources to expel the Old Believers in Little Russia. Regarding military matters, the Hetman was made a subject of the Russian army, the Cossack colonels were made Russian major generals, the Hetman could maintain no more than three mercenary regiments, and the ransoms received by the Cossacks would be given directly to the emperor. Finally, the Hetman was supposed to move his capital from Glukhov to a more appropriate location at his discretion [12].

Overall, Menshikov's reform of the Russo-Cossack relationship was an outcome that both parties benefited from immensely. The decline in the strength of the Cossacks relative to the Russian Empire had made the possibility of independence nothing more than a dream. Thus for the Cossacks to regain many of their privileges in return for formalizing their status as subjects of the Russian Empire and the supreme authority of its emperor was an appropriate outcome. On the other side, the Cossacks were still a critical tool of the Russian military, so it was in the Empire's best interest to keep the Cossacks in a compliant state so long as Russian authority was no jeopardized. These reforms did just that while also ending the major expense of the Collegium. Altogether, both the Cossacks and Russians had gained as much as they could have hoped for from the reforms and ensured a future of cooperation between themselves. For this reason, the Cossacks and Russians did not delay in implementing the new arrangement. Within a year many of the reforms had been put into place and the Collegium had been replaced by a Hetmanate led by Apostol. Meanwhile, Fyodor Vasilyevich Naumov was designated by Menshikov as the representative of the Emperor to the Hetmanate [13].

Another set of major reforms came in the form of revitalizing the economy of the Russian Empire. Although the Russian Empire's war is one of its largest trading partners, Britain, had resulted in massive losses for Russian merchants, the Russian economy been stifled well before the war began. These struggles were in large part caused by the trade policies of Peter I, which had been far too restrictive to foster the growth of the Russian economy. Instead, Peter I had hamstrung Russia's economic potential and put it on track to bankrupt itself. To reverse this damage, Menshikov drastically changed Russia's trade policies. First, the export duty on hemp and linen was cut down from 37% to just 5%. Second, Osterman was put at the head of a special commission charged with investigating Russian trade policies that invited Russian merchants to send suggestions. Third, the duty on the trade of Siberian furs was entirely removed. Additionally, Menshikov slashed spending on the navy and on Imperial pleasure cruises. This money was then redirected to promoting Russian trade and developing Russian industry [14].

These reforms were paired with a diplomatic overture by Osterman to the British to reestablish good terms between Russia and Britain. Even though Russia would have undergone these reforms anyway, Osterman painted them as an effort by Russia to reconcile with Britain and bridge differences between the two countries [15]. Specifically, Osterman described the cutting of the export duty on hemp and linen as a specific gesture of goodwill to the British rather than the endogenous trade reform that it was. Overall, this effort was warmly received by the new British government of Walpole and Townshend. Walpole as a man of peace and a representative of the merchants of London was typically concerned with pecuniary matters such as this and was very willing to end the decade-long hostilities between Britain and Russia. At the same time, Townshend was amenable to an Anglo-Russian friendship, because it sought to break the Russo-Hapsburg alliance and perhaps even turn Russia against the Hapsburgs. Either outcome would advance Townshend's anti-Hapsburg agenda. George II himself was willing to overlook Russia's role in the humiliation of Brunswick-Luneburg because his understanding of royal families allowed him to understand that the government of Peter II need not follow the same policies as the government of Catherine. More specifically, George II believed that Britain might wean the Russians away from protecting the Holstein-Gottorps and Mecklenburg as well and open the door to a British recovery of Bremen-Verden and Saxe-Lauenburg. This convergence of interests culminated in the Russia and Britain returning some captured merchant ships to each other and Russia ending its decade-long diplomatic absence in London by appointing Alexey Ivanovich Dashkov, brother-in-law of Menshikov, as Ambassador to Britain [16]. Although Britain and Russia were far from becoming closer friends, this campaign by Osterman was an important step toward that possibility.

The reforms of Menshikov's early reform dealt a smattering of issues. First, Menshikov oversaw some redesigning of Russia's administrative divisions. This redesign included creating a separate Novgorod Province, making the Narva Province part of the Reval Province, making the Poshekhonskaya Province part of the Moscow Province, renaming the Azov Province to Voronezh Province, renaming Riga Province to Livonia, renaming Yuryevskaya -Polish Province to the Yuryevskaya Province, and transferring the Ufa Province from the Kazan Governorate to Siberian Governorate [17]. The purpose of this administrative realignment was mainly to increase efficiency and clarify the chain of administrative authority. Finally, the custom of displaying the heads and limbs of convicted criminals in the public square of Saint Petersburg was ended permanently while a reprieve was granted to petty criminals in honor of Peter II's ascension [18]. Importantly, this change was meant to lessen the barbarity and brutality of the Russian Empire, which Peter I had only increased during his reign. Although all of these reforms were not necessarily progressive or radical in their intent and effect, they still presented a rationalization of Russian policy that was often missed during Peter I's reign.

Even though Menshikov was the ruler of Russia for all intents and purposes, he was not in fact the Autocrat of All Russia. Instead, that title was held by the thirteen-year-old Peter II, which makes discussion of him a necessary discourse. The first issue to address is the education of the monarch of Russia. Originally during the reigns of Peter I and Catherine, Peter II had been educated by a series of European commoners who had succeeded in teaching him German, French, and Latin. However, as the Emperor of Russia, Peter II's continued education needed to be of a higher order to prepare him to rule Russia, and thus Menshikov entrusted Osterman to instruct Peter II on the lessons of rulership. Given Peter II's youth, Osterman chose against a rigorous regime of reading and writing and instead arranged for Peter II to receive only four hours of learning a day for five days a week through friendly discussions. Still, Peter II was encouraged to develop his writing skills through the maintenance of a diary. The topics of education were divided into two tiers. The first tier consisted of political history, political economy, and the science of war due to the essential nature of these lessons to effectively ruling a country. The second tier consisted of ancient history, mathematics, geography and astronomy, natural science, architecture, and Galant Studia (heraldry, genealogy, archaeology, and numismatics) as lessons from these areas could add to Peter II's understanding of the first tier subjects. Throughout this education, special care was taken to emphasize examples of and differences between good rulers and bad rulers so that Peter II might learn by following in the footsteps of the former group. Additionally, Osterman as a diplomat described war as a costly and useless affair meant to advance the personal glory of warmongers whereas a prosperous peace was one of incredible virtue and value.

Even though Peter II did not prove to be the best student as he was prone to laziness and easily distracted, he still enjoyed the gentle method of teaching that Osterman provided. Quickly, Peter II became attached to Osterman. Peter II would visit Osterman each morning after waking and warmly greet him. Osterman was not the only politician to become a friend of Peter II. Despite his youth, Peter II was a passionate rider and loved to venture into the countryside on rides. During the war, Peter II had often ridden with his half-sister Elizabeth, but after her exile, he found himself without a riding companion. Although Peter II asked both Menshikov and Osterman if they would ride with him, their old age and busy occupations did not permit such frivolities. In their absence, Ivan Alekseevich Dolgorukov, a twenty-one-year-old soldier, who had avoided the hardships of the German and Finnish theatres, was able to become a close friend of Peter II. As a consequence of this relationship, Peter II began to frequent the residence of the Dolgorukov family and begin to fraternize with them. However, the most important relationship of all was of Peter II with his elder sister, Natalya. Although Natalya was just a year older than Peter II, he idolized her and listened to her wise and kind words, which were often provided by others including Osterman.

Regarding Menshikov's own relationship with Peter II, it was not as strong or idyllic as the Russian premier wanted. Out of Peter II's youthful rebelliousness and also due to the influence of the hostile Dolgorukovs, Peter II drifted away from Menshikov and grew distasteful of his stern grasp on Russia's politics. This development led to clashes between Peter II and Menshikov. In one case, Peter II dismissed his fiancee, Maria Menshikova, in public, which drew a rebuke from Menshikov. In turn, Peter II petulantly replied that being betrothed was enough, he did not need to confirm their relationship with public displays of affection. In another case, Peter II wanted to give his sister a gift of money but sent the money without consulting Menshikov only for Menshikov to cancel the order. In reply, Peter II berated Menshikov for daring to countermand the orders of the Emperor. When Menshikov dared to talk back and discuss how the war had depleted the Russian treasury too much for such gifts to be possible, Peter burst out that "Soon I will see whether you or I am the Emperor" [19]. Despite these clashes, Menshikov was still played the leading role in Peter II's coronation in the spring of 1730. Even if Peter II disliked Menshikov, Peter II was still only a child who could not command the authority to dismiss Menshikov all on its own. Meanwhile, Menshikov's enemies whether they be the Dolgorukovs or the Golitsyns were still leery of attacking Menshikov when he had the Guards standing resolutely behind him. Thus, even if there were cracks in Menshikov's control, he was still the most powerful man in Russia [20].

[1] These were the OTL assignments of Makarov, Yaguzhinsky, and Shafirov after Catherine's death, I do not see them changing much as all of not friends of Menshikov and Menshikov is still the one in full control just like OTL.
[2] Apraksin died around this time in OTL and I do not see him living any longer given the exhaustion and stress of the war he just fought.
[3] In OTL, Menshikov was described as being so absorbed in his power and tyrannical as a result. Here, Menshikov feels even more powerful due to his military accomplishments and is thus even less inclined to make concessions.
[4] These arrangements were made during Catherine's lifetime to secure Menshikov's support for Peter's succession.
[5] In OTL, the Guards followed Menshikov for a time despite him not being a massive and recent war hero. Here, I imagine the Guards will follow him more fervently in the initial wake of Catherine's death. This is not to say that the Guards will remain loyal as their loyalties were often pragmatic.
[6] There is some indication that the aristocrats were careful with managing guards in OTL. The aristocrats were cowed by the guards in 1725 and did gain the loyalty of guards before deposing Menshikov in 1727.
[7] In OTL, the aristocrats did not prevent the formal engagement from being made and announced.
[8] Despite being one of Peter I's pupils, Menshikov made still reforms during his four-month reign, which seemed to fix mistakes on the part of Peter I.
[9] Menshikov was notoriously corrupt and I cannot help but think that one of the reasons that he did involve himself in reforms, particularly commercial ones, was to enrich himself.
[10] In OTL, Apostol asked for autonomy in 1728 because the abuses and tyranny of the Little Russian Collegium had gone on too long and he sought reprieve. Here, Empress Catherine's War delays this petition and when it comes Apostol has the added benefit of having just fought for Russia's glory.
[11] In OTL, Menshikov was already out of power by the time Apostol's petition came. However, Menshikov can be a practical person and did have a mind of fixing Peter I's missteps. Also, the Cossacks did just fight a war for Russia and the Collegium was a very expensive bureaucracy. All in all, I feel that Menshikov like the Dolgorukovs would accept Apostol's petition and end the Collegium.
[12] These are the OTL reforms as best as I can describe them. I did not see a reason to change them.
[13] Naumov in OTL was also made the minister. I kept him as the minister in this timeline because he did politically rise during Menshikov's time as the first man of Russia and later sided against the Dolgorukovs, so I imagine he would be acceptable to Menshikov. Additionally, there must have been some reason, some familiarity for Naumov to be chosen as minister.
[14] These are the OTL economic reforms of Menshikov. I do not see any reason that they would be substantially different.
[15] I cannot see Osterman not trying to use these reforms for diplomatic gains for Britain.
[16] I picked Dashov because he has diplomatic experience and is Menshikov's brother-in-law, the person who became Russian ambassador in 1731 in OTL was a clear ally of the aristocrats and seems like an unlikely choice. Meanwhile, the last Russian ambassador to Britain was expelled, so I do not feel he would be welcomed back.
[17] These are OTL administrative changes that started under Menshikov in the spring of 1727 in OTL but were delayed by the war.
[18] Again, OTL reform.
[19] The education and relationships of Peter II are similar to OTL and similarly to OTL he does clash with Menshikov as these clashes began before Menshikov fell ill due to peter II's own personal issues with Menshikov.
[20] Here, Menshikov does not fall ill due to butterflies from the POD. Without Menshikov falling ill, the Dolgorukovs never get the chance to turn the Guards against him and thus do not have the confidence to push Peter II to dismiss and exile Menshikov. Instead, Menshikov remains the first man.

Word Count: 4217

 

[Archduke]

25: The Ansbach Incident

Friederike Luise of Prussia and Karl Wilhelm Friedrich of Brandenburg-Ansbach​

With the ratification of the Treaty of Vienna by both the British Parliament and the royal court of Prussia, the occupation of Hanover and the detainment of Prince Frederick of Brunswick-Luneburg came to an end. After spending nearly a year as the sole representative of the Hanoverian dynasty in its ancestral capital and a lifetime before that in a similar occupation, Prince Frederick's first thought was to return to his place as the presumptive leader of Brunswick-Luneburg's government. However, along with the news of Britain's ratification of the Treaty of Vienna came orders from King George II that instructed the Geheimrat or Secret Council to take over all responsibility for governing the Electorate in the absence of the Elector. When the new head of this council, Gerlach Adolph von Münchhausen, relayed this change to Prince Frederick, the prince's first response was to ask what role he would play on the council. Von Münchhausen informed the prince that his instructions regarding the council and its members included no mention of the prince. Furthermore, von Münchhausen had the displeasure of telling the prince that "in light of the peace" his command in the army of Brunswick-Luneburg had been revoked. In other words, George II had stripped Prince Frederick of any responsibility of possible vocation he had or could have in Brunswick-Luneburg [1].

The young Griff struggled to understand the meaning of his father's orders and refused to accept the thought lingering in the back of his mind that his father wanted nothing to do with him [2]. Defending against this thought, Griff begged of von Münchhausen if the letters from Britain included any request or invitation for Griff to go to Britain, join his family, and join in Britain's governance. Von Münchhausen could only reply in the negative, which made an obvious impression on Griff as his eyes widened and his face sunk. In an effort to give the prince who he knew well and did not dislike, von Münchhausen suggested that perhaps such letters were still to arrive since all the commands that von Münchhausen had received were in regard to Brunswick-Luneburg and its arrangements, not Britain. Thus, von Münchhausen recommended that Griff write to his father to receive clarification on the situation and hopefully an invitation to Britain. In line with von Münchhausen advice, Griff wrote a letter that offered all the formalities asking after his father and mother's health, acknowledging the accomplishment of peace, and so on, but within this letter, Griff rather directly asked whether he would be invited to Britain or if he should stay in Brunswick-Luneburg. If the latter, Griff asked what role he would have within Brunswick-Luneburg. George II's reply although swift was not at all satisfactory. George II bluntly refused to invite Griff to Britain as his presence was not needed [3]. George II also denied Griff any official role or capacity within the Electorate because as George II put it, the quick defeat of the Electorate demonstrated the necessity for "a serious government", which he strongly believed that Griff could not provide. Griff, of course, protested this sleight and tried to no avail to gain his entrance into Britain. Ultimately, Griff gave up and accepted his exile in Brunswick-Luneburg.

Left alone and without much at all to do in Brunswick-Luneburg, Griff at first tried to find some fulfillment in participating in some of the rebuilding efforts in Hanover and other nearby towns [4]. Although these projects occupied some of Griff's time, they did not occupy enough of his time. Worse yet, the winter sojourn of the commanders of the Viennese Alliance in Herrenhausen had given him a taste of a real, full, and rich court life. Although in the peace, Herrenhausen returned to its lively nature with frequent visitors and occasional balls, nothing matched the splendor and exoticness of the previous winter. Sorely he missed dancing and talking with people of all nations and yearned for some return to the excitement and intrigue of a full court. He also missed his once promised bride, Wilhelmine, with who his brief flirtation during his imprisonment had left him deeply infatuated and even in love. Finally, Griff missed little Fritz of Prussia, his friend and former "foe" who shared with him the unfortunate experience of a poor father. Although Griff wrote to both Wilhelmine and Fritz, these verbal communications were poor substitutes for the dances and laughs that they had exchanged with one another [5].

In Griff's state of boredom and longing for a Prussian connection, he rather suddenly decided to interfere in Prussian politics when reading about the upcoming marriage between Friederike Luise of Prussia and Karl Wilhelm Friedrich of Brandenburg-Ansbach. In the letters from both Wilhelmine and Fritz, Griff heard complaints about the unsuitability of the marriage, of how a margrave of so low a state as Brandenburg-Ansbach had no right to marry a Princess of Prussia. Additionally, Wilhelmine complained about her younger sister marrying before her and how she had only done so to become their father's favorite. Meanwhile, Fritz reflected poorly on Karl Wilhelm Friedrich as an uncultured and brutish man from Fritz's encounters with him during the war. These complaints moved the Prince of Brunswick-Luneburg and made him feel no choice but to intercede on the behalf of his love and his friend with their father, King Friedrich Wilhelm I, to stop the marriage [6].

The plan of the twenty-two-year-old prince was not very sophisticated nor underhanded as neither befits the nature of Griff. Instead, all Griff did was send a single soldier, Lieutenant Colonel August de la Motte, who had been a friend of Griff as a youth and brother-in-arms in war, to Potsdam to seek out Friedrich Wilhelm and plead the case against marriage [7]. Despite the recent war between Brunswick-Luneburg and Prussia, de la Motte was able to make his trip across the border and to Potsdam without encountering any difficulties. Once he reached Potsdam, he immediately requested an audience with the king and refused to discuss his business with anyone else. This curious appearance by a foreign military officer fascinated Friedrich Wilhelm enough that he granted de la Motte the audience. Once alone with the king, de la Motte read a letter from Griff that detailed his misgivings about the marriage between Friederike Luise and the Margrave of Brandenburg-Ansbach. This discussion initially carried little interest for Friedrich Wilhelm who saw it as a foreign prince imprudently interfering in Prussian affairs. Thus, the failure of de la Motte's mission seemed inevitable until de la Motte listed Wilhelmine's bachelorette status as one of Griff's reasons for objecting to Friederike Luise's marriage.

The mention of Wilhelmine caused Friderich Wilhelm's head to pop up and a question to pop out asking what Griff's meaning was. When de la Motte said that Griff had not written anything more on the topic, the Prussian king pressed him for an answer. Friedrich Wilhelm was under the impression that de la Motte was closer to an official dignitary with the knowledge of Griff's plans and the power to negotiate beyond the scope of his written materials. Friedrich Wilhelm failed to understand that de la Motte was nothing more than a prince's friend. However, de la Motte himself was untrained in diplomatic affairs and inexperienced in dealing directly with a king. In that moment, de la Motte forgot himself and suggested that Griff eagerly looked forward to marrying Wilhelmine and that he would prefer to marry Wilhelmine before any settlement for Friederike Luise was made [8]. The idea of marrying his eldest daughter to the future King of Great Britain and Elector of Brunswick-Luneburg had long excited Friedrich Wilhelm and this latest suggestion of its possibility in spite of Prussia's war against Britain and Brunswick-Luneburg reinvigorated Friedrich Wilhelm's belief in the project. In Friedrich Wilhelm's excitement, he consented to delay the Ansbach marriage until after Wilhelmine's if he received positive confirmation of Griff's intention to marry Wilhelmine and approval from the English court. Friedrich Wilhelm looked forward to the opportunity to secure an alliance with Britain that might advance his interests in the Baltic.

With this happy news of the Ansbach marriage being put off and a potential marriage for Griff with his beloved, de la August wrote back to Griff claiming victory. Griff was less certain and less happy. He had only asked for de la Motte to try to stop Friederike Luise's marriage not to arrange his own. Not to mention that de la Motte had only gotten a delay of Friederike Luise's marriage, not an end to it. Had de la Motte just tried to break off the Ansbach marriage and failed then Griff could have accepted that he had tried and failed. Now, however, he found himself in a much more difficult spot where he had to navigate either potentially insulting his own father by revealing that he had negotiated a marriage without his father's involvement or insulting the King in Prussia by failing to follow up on the promises given by de la Motte. Since Griff was unsure of how to broach the topic to his father, he delayed sending word of the development to Britain until he could figure out what to do. In the meantime, he asked de la Motte to stay in Potsdam until Griff recalled him just in case Griff needed to pass more messages on to Friedrich Wilhelm [9].

As Griff delayed, news of his intervention in the Ansbach match inevitably leaked out. First, in Brandeburg-Ansbach, the margrave was informed of the potential delay of his marriage to Friederike Luise until other matters were sorted out. Then in Potsdam, word slowly spread about de la Motte being a friend and a messenger of the Prince of Brunswick-Luneburg, which spawned rumors about his reasons for being in Potsdam and those rumors were often tried to the Prince and Wilhelmine's previous betrothal. Finally, someone revealed to Queen Sophia Dorothea that de la Motte was in fact in Potsdam for the purpose of securing a marriage between Griff and Wilhelmine, which she took to mean that Griff intended to marry Wilhelmine on his own without seeking the consultation of George II. This was an idea that Sophia Dorothea relished because George II had denied her the inheritance she had expected from her father. First, he had claimed that George I had felt her nothing at all but when Prussia's ally, Brunswick-Wolfenbuttel revealed otherwise, George II continued to deny Sophia Dorothea her piece of the inheritance. Thus, she was eager to humiliate her brother by stealing away his eldest son. Unfortunately, the forever indiscreet Sophia Dorothea chose to reveal the assumed elopement of Griff to many members of the court and it ultimately reached the British minister in Potsdam, Brigadier-General Charles Dubourgay. Unhesitantly, Dubourgay relayed this rumor and the Queen's conviction in it to the British court and King George II [10].

News of Griff's alleged plans to elope with Wilhelmine of Prussia created outrage within the British royal family. George II had already grown to dislike his son for usurping his place as leader of Brunswick-Luneburg, then as a soldier, and finally as a leader of men. George II's jealously had driven him to keep his son out of England where his popularity could be a rallying point for the Opposition and thus a rallying point for opposition to George II's rule. However, at all these points, George II had still thought of Griff as a faithful member of the Hanoverian dynasty. Now, Dubourgay's news suggested that Griff was not faithful at all. Instead, he would willingly ignore his filial duty to elope without the consent of his parents. Instead, he would align himself with Prussia, one of the states that had just helped oversee the partition of Brunswick-Luneburg. Instead, he would make himself a servant of the Prussian crown. He was a disloyal and mischievous villain that George II could not believe was his son. At the same time, George II's wife, Caroline of Ansbach, was furious that Griff had interfered with the marriage of her nephew, Karl Wilhelm Friedrich, to a Prussian princess. Even though Caroline was now a British queen and had not been in Germany for fifteen years, she still remained loyal to her family and its interests including the incredible marriage of her nephew to one of Friedrich Wilhelm's daughters. Griff's interference was unwanted and Caroline could not forgive it [11].

Despite these feelings of disgust at the actions of Griff, neither George II nor Caroline wrote to Griff to reprimand him for his behavior. Instead, the two of them were so shocked and appalled by Griff's actions that they did not write to him at all about the event. George II's only action was to inform Dubourgay that he had been given no notice about Griff's plans and had not approved them. Accordingly, he had Dubourgay issue a protest to Friedrich Wilhelm for his participation in Griff's unsanctioned misadventure and especially Friedrich Wilhelm's apparent consent to Griff's plans to elope. Friederich Wilhelm denied that an elopement had ever been mentioned to him. However, knowing the mind of his brother-in-law, Friedrich Wilhelm ordered the arrest of de la Motte as evidence of his truthfulness [12]. De la Motte tried to argue against his arrest and repeatedly pointed out that he had all the necessary papers but no one in Potsdam dared to oppose the will of the irritated Friedrich Wilhelm after he beat his wife viciously for her role in the affair. Furthermore, both Dubourgay and the Brunswick-Luneburger representative refused to ask for de la Motte's release or even extradition. Besides arresting de la Motte, Friedrich Wilhelm satisfied the demands of Caroline by removing the final obstacles for Frederike Luise and Karl Wilhelm Friedrich's marriage and setting the date for the following summer in 1730.

All the while Griff was left in the dark about what had transpired. The British court communicated nothing to him as he had few friends among its members and very few in places close to the King and Queen. The Prussian court also went silent because Friedrich Wilhelm was too humiliated to tell Griff of the breakdown of talks and of de la Motte's arrest. Ultimately, a letter from Fritz revealed all that had happened, and Griff was saddened to think that his friend had gotten arrested over overblown rumors. Griff's sadness was worsened by his realization that he might never marry Wilhelmine and that he might forever remain exiled in Brunswick-Luneburg. In his sadness, Griff defaulted to his pre-war habits of drinking nightly, gambling daily, and involving himself with a number of women [13]. His disreputable behavior quickly reached the British court where it combined with the Ansbach incident made for a powerful argument to finally bring Griff to Britain. George II entertained the thought but dismissed it when he began to think that Griff had organized the whole episode just to be called to Britain. Thus, Griff was left to languish all alone in Hanover through the winter.

Overall, the Ansbach episode failed to create any meaningful changes in European politics as all it served to do was temporarily delay the Ansbach marriage. However, the episode demonstrated the extent of the distance and distrust between Griff and his parents that had arisen from years of physical separation. This distance and distrust left Griff isolated in Hanover and drove him to engage in independent diplomacy. Meanwhile, when his parents heard of Griff's actions they assumed the worse and did not even try to discipline him for his perceived misbehavior. And on both sides, this episode only furthered the distance and distrust. Additionally, the episode showed that although Friedrich Wilhelm was willing to put his war with George II behind him and move on to reestablish positive relations with the Hanoverian dynasty, this sentiment was not mutual. George II still considered Prussia to be an enemy. In the end, Friedrich Wilhelm had still chosen to pursue positive relations with George II by imprisoning de la Motte but this did not earn any reciprocal action from Britain. Outside of what the episode showed and did, the episode also served as a precursor to the coming events by keeping tensions between Britain and Prussia high and further developing the relationship between Griff and Fritz.

[1] Similar to OTL, George II ultimately leaves Frederick of Wales without a role in Hanover. This happens TTL, just later due to the war delaying George II from depowering his son.
[2] In OTL, Frederick of Wales was the one who tried to bridge the gap between him and his parents when he first arrived and was ultimately rebuffed. So here, he is giving his father the benefit of doubt.
[3] George II kept Frederick of Wales out of Britain for more than a year in OTL (in contrast to what has been suggested in other TLs). Here with Frederick of Wales being considerably more popular as a war hero, George II is also going to keep Frederick of Wales out.
[4] Firstly, Frederick of Wales participated in putting out a fire when he was Prince of Wales like a commoner. So here, Frederick of Wales helps rebuild.
[5] In OTL, Frederick of Wales and Frederick of Prussia were known to have written to each other. What started this correspondence is unknown but it is known that they wrote as young men. So here, having met each other they will also be writing each other. Additionally, Frederick of Wales' physical encounter with Wilhelmine has resulted in her becoming a frequent correspondent of his.
[6] So in OTL, there was an incident in which August de la Motte went to Potsdam, met with Frederick William I of Prussia, stayed in Potsdam for some time, and was ultimately arrested. The exact specifics of this incident are unknown. Wilhelmine's memoirs state that August de la Motte came as an envoy of Frederick of Wales to arrange her marriage to Frederick of Wales. Some sources go so far as to suggest that Frederick of Wales wanted to elope with Wilhelmine in Potsdam. Other sources make no mention of the marriage proposal. Meanwhile, Frances Vivian finds that Frederick of Wales was actually interfering with the Ansbach marriage. I tend to believe Frances Vivian that interfering with the Ansbach marriage was either Frederick of Wales' original or main intention. In TTL, the Ansbach marriage is still going to go through because Ansbach is still a Prussian ally and I am suggesting that one of Frederick of Wales' motivations for interfering in the marriage is Wilhelmine and Frederick's disagreement with the marriage. In Wilhelmine's memoirs she seems bitter about the marriage and in Frederick's biographies his disagreement with the Margrave of Ansbach is mentioned, so it seems reasonable to believe that they would voice their objections to Frederick of Wales.
[7] August de la Motte is the character who in OTL carried out this assignment and in TTL he is still a friend of Frederick of Wales so I have kept him as the character.
[8] I do refuse to believe, as Andrew C. Thompson suggests, that Frederick of Wales and Wilhelmine's marriage had nothing to do with this mission. Wilhelmine's memoirs were exaggerated, mistaken, and even false at points but her description of this episode is so vivid that some validity must been given to it. Also, the accepted OTL sequence of events does not make sense if all that was at stake was the Ansbach marriage. Frederick William I has no reason to postpone the marriage unless Frederick of Wales has something to offer and if Frederick William I is not going to consider postponing the marriage then it will never become a large enough issue for Ansbach to mention it to Britain as Thompson suggests. Nor will de la Motte be able to stay in Potsdam for as long as he did before getting arrested. Something greater must have been at stake. Thus, I am going to hypothesize that what happened was that de la Motte, a soldier without diplomatic experience or training, said something to the effect of Frederick of Wales marrying Wilhelmine, which captured Frederick William's attention. Frederick William seemed to be in favor of the match, so it would be something that would capture his attention and give him pause.
[9] Again, de la Motte stayed in Potsdam from his arrival until his arrest in OTL. Hence de la Motte staying in Potsdam TTL.
[10] In Wilhelmine's memoirs she says that her mother revealed the scheme to Dubourgay who was obligated to tell London and then London killed the scheme and de la Motte was arrested. Whether that exact occurrence happened or not is unknown but I think Dubourgay finding out from the general court gossip is certainly plausible.
[11] In OTL, George II was at least willing to give Frederick of Wales half a chance when he first arrived. Caroline never gave him a chance and very early on was noted as being incessantly hostile to him. It is hard to imagine why she would act this way toward him when she literally does not know him. I am going to hypothesize that Frances Vivian being right about the Ansbach purpose of de la Motte's mission also is linked to Caroline's early and seemingly unwarranted hatred of Frederick of Wales. Essentially, Frederick did interfere and as the aunt of the Ansbach margrave, Caroline was so upset that she decided to hate Frederick early on. The only other hypothesis is another one that historians only really mention in passing. This theory states that Caroline had an affair that produced Frederick of Wales and her own shame resulted in her hatred toward him. This theory emerges from her calling him a half-caste repeatedly. However, for Caroline to have had an affair in Brunswick-Luneburg after what happened to Konigsmarck just seems incredibly unlikely. Thus, a different explanation is necessary.
[12] As in OTL, Frederick William arrests de la Motte to keep Anglo-Prussian relations intact.
[13] In OTL, this is the type of behavior Griff was pursuing up until he was called to Britain. In TTL, he pursued that behavior up until the war but his experiences through the war sobered him up temporarily. However, in his isolation he returned to this type of behavior.

Word Count: 3715

 

[Archduke]

26: The Crisis of the Parmese Succession

Rear Admiral Charles Stewart​

Spain's victory in Empress Catherine's War was memorialized by the Treaty of Madrid by which Spain regained for herself Gibraltar and Sardinia and gained for one of its sons, Don Carlos, then rights of succession to the Duchy of Parma and Piacenza and the Duchy of Tuscany. Although France and especially Britain had exacted their price for these concessions the peace was still incredibly advantageous to Spain and satisfactory to its court. The reason for this satisfaction was that beyond the treaty granting Spain so many material gains it gave Spain something that it had been missing and searching for ever since the Treaty of Pyrennes, redemption. For decades, Spain had suffered nothing but defeat in its wars against the states of Europe. From the Franco-Spanish War to Louis XIV's wars to the War of the Quadruple Alliance, all Spain received was defeat after defeat. And with each defeat, Spain's enemies and even allies stole away another slice of Spain. What had started as Spain just losing Roussillon quickly spiraled into Spain losing Portugal, the Spanish Road, the Spanish Netherlands, all of Spanish Italy, and even Gibraltar and Menorca. Besides these losses of land, these defeats began to steal away at Spain's ideas of empire, Spain's ideas about itself, Spain's identity. What was Spain if not one of Europe's most preeminent and influential states? What was Spain if it was hemmed in behind the Pyrennes and powerless in the Mediterranean as it had been when France conquered the Basque counties and Britain destroyed the entire Spanish navy at Cape Passero? Even with these harmful thoughts entering the minds of the Spanish, they still held on to their pride and their memories as they dreamed of a day that Spain might take it all back and with it take back her dignity. While with the Treaty of Madrid, that day came and Spain once again saw herself as a power to be reckoned with. Decades of trial and turbulence had finally been vindicated.

That vindication went unbothered through the remainder of Empress Catherine's War and the rest of 1729. However, when Antonio Farnese, Duke of Parma and Piacenza, died in January 1730, that sense of glorious achievement was put under threat when half of the hard-fought terms of the Treaty of Madrid came under threat [1]. Immediately following the death of Antonio Farnese, the Hapsburg governor of Milan, Wirich Philipp von Daun, crossed the Milanese-Parmese border with more than 10,000 soldiers [2]. The unprepared and overall weak Duchy of Parma and Piacenza could do nothing to stop the Hapsburg army and within a few short weeks, the whole duchy was under Hapsburg occupation. Dorothea Sophie of the Palatinate, the regent of Parma and Piacenza and former duchess, vigorously protested this "illegal" occupation but her appeals to Daun and her letters to Prince Eugene of Savoy failed to alter the situation [3]. All Dorothea Sophie's protests were rewarded with the taciturn reply that the Hapsburg army did not mean to conquer Parma, just to keep law and order under Holy Roman Emperor Charles VI could invest the proper successor to Antonio Farnese with the dignity of Duke of Parma and Piacenza. An experienced and intelligent woman, Dorothea Sophia placed no faith in that statement and instead wrote to her daughter, Isabel Farnese, of the Hapsburg invasion.

Isabel Farnese naturally was furious at the Hapsburgs' blatant attempt to deprive her eldest of his rightful inheritance. Isabel was not the only one displeased with the Hapsburg action as Felipe V also was interested in establishing a separate estate for his third son. Meanwhile, the first minister of Spain, Jose Patino, and the rest of the Spanish court felt insulted by the Hapsburg violation of Spain's reward for its participation in Empress Catherine's War. This multilateral and government-wide resentment toward the Hapsburg action led to the Hapsburg ambassador in Spain, Joseph Lothar Dominik Graf von Königsegg-Rothenfels, becoming the victim of some rather heated criticisms. The overall message was that Don Carlos was the rightful Duke of Parma and Piacenza according to both the Treaty of Madrid and the Treaty of the Quadruple Alliance. Although the Hapsburgs were not a party of the former treaty, they were among the signatories of the Quadruple Alliance. Thus, Spain viewed the Hapsburgs as in clear violation of their treaty obligations and Spain threatened to wage war against the Hapsburgs unless they made amends.

In the face of energetic Spanish resistance, Prince Eugene did raise some questions about the long-term feasibility of the Hapsburg mission. In particular, Prince Eugene pointed out the difficult financial situation for the Hapsburg monarchy would make a war with the other signatories of the Treaty of Madrid and Treaty of the Quadruple Alliance nigh impossible. However, other members of the Hapsburg government and Hofkriegsrat were more confident and few believed that Britain and France would actually stand by Spain. With Prince Eugene making any strong protest to counter, the influence of the more bellicose officials led to Emperor Charles VI approving the dispatch of 30,000 men to Milan and Parma. Through this show of resolve, the Hapsburgs intended to cow the Spanish and if the Spaniards refused to be cowed then the Hapsburgs felt that that army would be more than sufficient to defeat any Spanish invasion. Altogether, the Hapsburgs were putting together an army of more than 40,000 men in northern Italy and to command it, the Hapsburgs chose none other than the victor of Bassignana, Count Claude Florimond de Mercy [4]. For Emperor Charles VI, this action was not just about possibly securing Parma for himself but also about showing the strength of the Hapsburgs in the wake of Spain, Prussia, Saxony, and Russia's victories during the Empress Catherine's War.

Even before this reinforcement, Spain was already readying for war. Whether the Hapsburgs complied or not, Isabel Farnese was eager to use the slight delay in her son's ascension to the throne of Parma as an excuse for an all-out war against the Hapsburgs. In these dreams of war, Isabel Farnese imagined placing the crowns of Naples and Sicily on Don Carlos' head. As she dived into these dreams they became grander and more elaborate with a Lombard crown for her second son Felipe. For Felipe V, Patino, and the Spanish court their own edging toward war was less about an intense desire to give Don Carlos a crown and more about adding to the glory of Spain through defending the Treaty of Madrid and besting the Hapsburgs. For all of them continuing Spain's resurgence through another display of martial prowess seemed like a necessary venture. Only, Patino hesitated as he knew the costs, the high, high costs, of the Empress Catherine's War for Spain's treasury and he was reluctant to impose another set of high, high costs just a little over a year after Spain had finished that last war. On a military level, however, Patino shared the confidence of Spain's courtiers and generals that Spain could defeat the Hapsburgs [5].

In preparation for war, Spain initially reached out to Britain and France to ask that they fulfill their obligations under the Treaty of Madrid. Specifically, Britain and France's obligations to each contribute 8,000 infantry and 4,000 horse to help install Don Carlos and a Spanish garrison in Parma [6]. In both Britain and France, the first instinct was toward diplomacy due to the private inclinations of the leaders there. Both Sir Robert Walpole and Cardinal Fleury felt that charging into war would be unwise and detrimental to their own agendas. At the same time, neither Britain nor France wanted to lose Spain as an ally. Already Spain had proved itself militarily competent in Empress Catherine's War, which made Spain a good ally in general. However, for Britain and France specifically, the alliance of Spain was an important counterweight to each other [7]. Thus, while the British and French ambassadors in Spain, William Stanhope and Louis de Brancas, respectively, delivered their governments' promises of support to Felipe V and Isabel, the ambassadors in Vienna, James Waldegrave and François de Bussy, inquired into the possibility of a peaceful settlement.

Both the British and French diplomats informed the Hapsburgs that their governments would not tolerate Don Carlos being deprived of his rights. This stern reproach threw some cold water on the Hapsburg emotions. Nevertheless, the Hapsburgs were still interested in showing their resolve and coming out of this little crisis ahead. Thus, the Hapsburgs wanted it recognized that the Emperor, not Britain nor France was responsible for determining the Duke of Parma and Piacenza. The Hapsburgs wanted the duchy's succession recognized as reverting to the Emperor before he invested Don Carlos with it. In this way, Imperial authority in Imperial and in general would be reinforced. Additionally, the Hapsburgs wanted the return of the neutral Swiss garrisons for Parma that they had agreed to in the Quadruple Alliance rather than the Spanish garrisons that Britain and France had conceded in the Treaty of Madrid. Next, the Hapsburgs wanted to keep the question of Tuscany's succession open and also wanted that to flow through the Emperor's authority. Finally, the Hapsburgs wanted Spain to guarantee the Pragmatic Sanction [8].

For both Britain and France, the Hapsburgs' demands were too much as they represented a step back from the Treaty of the Quadruple Alliance, which Britain and France were inclined to few as the absolute floor for negotiations. When Britain and France aggressively refused the Hapsburg terms, the Hapsburgs did temper their terms by offering to reaffirm Don Carlos' rights in Tuscany but other concessions were slow to come. The Hapsburgs stalwartly defended their demands of neutral garrisons and a Spanish guarantee of the Pragmatic Sanction. This stalwartness affected both the British and French opinions on the crisis. In Britain, the fears of the Hapsburg threat to the balance of Europe of Lord Townshend, Secretary of State for the Northern Department and senior secretary of foreign affairs, had been confirmed by the Hapsburgs being on the winning side of the Empress Catherine's War. And whereas before other members of the British parliament including Townshend's former brother-in-law, Walpole, were reluctant to agree, many including Walpole now did see at least some validity in the assertion. Even more importantly, King George II strongly supported Townshend's viewpoint and more than that wanted revenge against the Hapsburgs for their role in plotting the partition of the Electorate of Brunswick-Luneburg. Thus, the British had entered into peace negotiations they had done so with the goal of gaining greater concessions from the Hapsburgs to curb their power. When the Hapsburgs instead argued for concessions to be given to them they only proved Townshend's point and diminished the remaining sympathy for them in the British parliament. The end result was that the British approach to the crisis hardened and the opinion of parliament began to shift in favor of using arms to humble the Hapsburgs. Even Walpole began to suggest that action against the Hapsburgs might be necessary to safeguard the Treaty of Madrid and Britain's commercial relationship with Spain [9].

In contrast to the coalescing of anti-Hapsburg feelings among both leadership and government in Britain, France saw a major division between Fleury and the other leading ministers of France arise over the Parmese question. Fleury vehemently thought that war against the Hapsburgs was misguided. In Fleury's opinion, his view about the Hapsburgs being militarily stronger than France and of the Hapsburgs having commanding authority in the Holy Roman Empire had been proven by Empress Catherine's War. On the Rhine, the Hapsburgs had ultimately pushed the French back and in Germany, every secular Prince-Elector had raised arms in support of the Holy Roman Emperor. Due to this strength, Fleury thought that France needed to avoid war with the Hapsburgs and agree to the demands of the Hapsburgs, which he did not feel would strengthen them too much nor cost France much. Fleury was opposed in this viewpoint by the Minister of State, Marshal d'Huxelles, who saw France's defeats as the fault of Fleury. If France used its full might then the Hapsburgs would fall easily before the French sword. Meanwhile, the French failure of diplomacy in Germany was a natural extension of its reluctance to use arms. No one would ally with France if it feared that France would not actually come to its support when the time came. For these exact reasons, d'Huxelles felt that not only would a war be in France's favor but also that a war was necessary. If France did not fight to defend the Treaty of Madrid then it would immediately lose Spain as an ally to either Britain or the Emperor. in either case, France would be worse off. D'Huxelles was supported in this debate by the Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs, Germain-Louis Chauvelin, and of course, the entire military establishment of France. Despite being outnumbered, Fleury's direct line to king meant that Louis XV allowed Fleury's view to dominate [10].

Given these two perspectives in Britain and France, Britain joined Spain in readying for war while France desperately tried to achieve peace. In Vienna, de Bussy tried to find any room for concessions from the Hapsburgs that might make the Spaniards amenable to a settlement that did not exactly match the Treaty of Madrid. Meanwhile, in Spain, Louis de Brancas, cautioned Felipe V and Isabel against war and suggested that they accept neutral garrisons as they had done in the Treaty of the Quadruple Alliance. This suggestion did not go over well with the Spanish monarchs who questioned why France did not support her ally. To which de Brancas was authorized to reply that France would look indifferently upon Spain's actions as it would do upon any of its allies who decided to act without consulting France. This answer only further upset the Spanish monarchs who replied that if France was so indifferent to Spain then Spain need not consult France with regard to its actions [11]. Subsequently, de Brancas found himself almost completely shut out of the diplomatic flurry in Spain. At the same time, Jose Patino's brother, Baltasar Patino, Marquis of Castelar, vociferously denounced the French and Cardinal Fleury, in Paris. Thus, just as d'Huxelles had predicted, Fleury's strategy had jeopardized the Franco-Spanish alliance and also, just as he predicted the British were swooping in to steal France's natural and dynastic ally away. While the French tried for peace, the British admiralty prepared a full war fleet numbering more than thirty ships to sail to the Mediterranean. Additionally, Walpole promised to submit to parliament a bill requesting funds to support 12,000 soldiers just as Britain had agreed in the Treaty of Madrid. Both of these actions were well received by the Spanish [12].

The British moves toward war gave Spain even more confidence and led to Jose Patino making the necessary arrangements to put together a full Spanish army to invade Italy. On the diplomatic front, Isabel Farnese began to discuss with Britain the possibility of launching a very punishing war against the Hapsburgs. The Spanish mentioned attacks against the Southern Netherlands, Milan, and Naples. Naturally, the prospect of war in the Southern Netherlands frightened the British, even more so after the idea leaked to the French and d'Huxelles voiced his support for it. At that point, the British were seized with premonitions of a French invasion of Britain via Antwerp and many parliament members absolutely rejected the idea of attacking the Southern Netherlands. However, the overall displeasure at the Hapsburg actions and willingness to support Spain went undiminished. Although Britain would no one way condone or support an attack on the Southern Netherlands, Walpole said in a speech to the Commons that a war "below the Alps" had been made necessary by the unlawful occupation of Parma.

The idea of a war "below the Alps" was brought to Spain through Stanhope and through his talks with the Spanish government a scheme began to form. Britain was going to raise an army of 12,000 men and Spain an army of 30,000 men to create an army of 42,000 men. To this army, Britain and Spain would invite France to contribute its 12,000 men and also invite the Duke of Tuscany, His Holiness, and the Duke of Savoy. This army would be tasked with liberating Parma and Piacenza and then razing Milan to punish the Hapsburgs for their recaltricance. At the same time, the British navy and some additional Spanish soldiers were to land in Naples and Sicily and liberate them from Hapsburg occupation. Ultimately, Parma and Piacenza, Naples, and Sicily would all be turned over to Don Carlos to form a separate Italian kingdom. Don Carlos' succession to Tuscany would also be affirmed and so would his exclusion from the Spanish line of succession. In this manner, Isabel Farnese's ambitions for her son would be satisfied, Spain's desire to beat the Hapsburgs and defend its honor would be fulfilled, and Britain's plan to curb the Hapsburgs while avoiding empowering the Spanish too much would be accomplished. Accordingly, both the Spanish court under Isabel's influence and the British government under Walpole and Townshend's consented to the "below the Alps" plan [13].

Neither Britain nor Spain delayed in preparing to put the plan into action. As promised, Walpole submitted his bill for troops to parliament and it passed with a majority of 213-117. This majority was not as large as Walpole's typical majority, which usually surpassed 100, and the opposition made a better showing than their typical number of less than 100. Still, the majority was close to 100 and the opposition vote was below 150, so Walpole's government was under no threat of collapse. Across the courts of Europe, the results of this vote were relayed and described as evidence of Britain's strong favor toward war against the Hapsburgs [14]. Many diplomats expected that this would be the first of several anti-Hapsburg bills with rumors of a subsidy for Spain and another bill for soldiers, neither of which was actually true as neither would have been palatable to the British parliament. Besides passing the bill, the British government also oversaw the departure of Rear Admiral Charles Stewart and a British war fleet for Spain. With Britain and her allies controlling the Atlantic, the Admiralty did not believe it was necessary for the fleet to wait in Britain to convey the British army [15]. Instead, it was of greater importance for the British fleet to arrive in the Mediterranean early and support the already mobilizing Spanish army.

The full-hearted shift toward war by Britain damned Fleury's policy of peace and served a major defeat of him within the French government. Fleury would have been well-served to immediately change his tune into something more befitting the realities that he faced. However, vainly Fleury refused to completely admit his mistake and still tried for peace. At the same time, d'Huxelles prepared several war plans to match the "below the Alps" scheme and even passed them on to the British ambassador to France, Horace Walpole. These two opposing tracks created an image of France dithering, which did it no good at all in its relations with Britain and Spain. Fleury damaged French relations with Britain and Spain even further when he decided to try to subvert their alliance. Fleury tried to convince the Spanish that the British meant to kidnap Don Carlos and use him as a hostage against Spain. To avoid this fate, Fleury offered the Spanish a fleet of more than forty ships to oppose the impending British naval attack on Spain. In response, Spain suggested that France send its fleet to Barcelona and if the British turned out to be foes then together Spain and France would fight them off. If not, then France's fleet that wanted to fight Britain could surely support Spain in fulfilling the Treaty of Madrid. Fleury's silence served as its reply. Fortunately for France, Spain decided against informing Britain of Fleury's offer. Had they done so, it might very well have been fatal to the Anglo-French alliance [16].

Even more fortunately for France was that with the amicable arrival of the British fleet at Cadiz, the Hapsburg resolve crumbled [17]. When Admiral Stewart dined with Felipe V, Isabel Farnese, and Don Carlos in Seville, any hope the Hapsburgs had of the British bluffing evaporated and the threat of an Anglo-Spanish attack on Naples and Sicily became all too real. Once Prince Eugene confirmed that the Hapsburgs could no way fund a war against the British and Spanish, the Hapsburgs reopened serious talks with the British and French, albeit with the French being viewed as less important and being given less time to talk. Having already accepted Don Carlos in Parma and Piacenza and Tuscany, the Hapsburgs now came to accept Spanish garrisons in Parma at the number of 6,000 men as the Treaty of Madrid outlined. However, the Hapsburgs still clung to their demand that Spain guarantee the Pragmatic Sanction. Britain found this agreement to be acceptable as it peacefully preserved the Treaty of Madrid and brought it to the Spanish.

In this moment, the Spanish tried to convince the British that the Hapsburgs were not to be trusted and that war should proceed. The sentiment in Britain, however, was not the same. These terms were good and Britain could not see itself fighting the Hapsburgs if Spain had rejected these terms. Fearful of fighting alone, the Spaniards accepted the idea of peace but still tried to find a better deal. Firstly, the Spanish tried to return to the 1725 Treaty of Vienna by asking that Don Carlos receive Naples and Sicily in return for marrying Maria Theresa. However, the Hapsburgs had no interest in that offer, and the British also quietly informed the Hapsburgs of their opposition to a Bourbon marriage for Maria Theresa. Next, the Spanish tried to get a marriage between Don Carlos and Maria Amalia including a dowry of Sicily, but the Hapsburgs also felt no pressure to accept this offer. Ultimately, the Spanish accepted to give the Hapsburgs their guarantee of the Pragmatic Sanction but only in return for the Hapsburgs recognizing Don Carlos as the heir to Tuscany and agreeing to invest him upon the death of Grand Duke Gian Gastone. This term regarding Tuscany was considerably stronger and more clear than previous treaties in which Don Carlos' vague "rights" to Tuscany were acknowledged.

The crisis was definitively ended in late April with the Treaty of Vienna of 1730 between the Holy Roman Emperor, Spain, and Britain. Its terms stated that the Emperor would invest Don Carlos as the Duke of Parma and Piacenza and promise to invest Don Carlos as the Grand Duke of Tuscany upon the extinction of the House of Medici. Don Carlos was to acknowledge the suzerainty of the Emperor. To secure Don Carlos' rule, Spain was permitted to send a garrison of 6,000 men into Italy and they would be permitted to stay permanently. In return, Spain guaranteed the Pragmatic Sanction. Secretly, the Hapsburgs also agreed with Britain that no Bourbon would be married to Maria Theresa. The British also tried to get the Hapsburgs to consent that no Hohenzollern would be wed to Maria Theresa, but the Hapsburgs were unwilling to jeopardize their relationship with Prussia by calling out the Hohenzollerns by name. Instead, the Hapsburgs agreed that no husband that might alter the balance of Europe would be accepted [18].

Altogether, the Crisis of the Parmese Succession was a victory at varying degrees for Spain, Britain, and the Hapsburgs. Spain had the terms of the Treaty of Madrid fulfilled through the latest Treaty of Vienna and indeed had them improved upon with the Emperor investing Don Carlos with Parma and promising to do the same with Tuscany. Beforehand, the Emperor's stance on Don Carlos in Parma and Tuscany had been vaguer and vagueness creates room for cheating and conflict. Of course, Spain had hoped to gain more through the crisis, particularly through war. However, victory was not necessarily certain and wars are expensive, so Spain was not displeased with what it gained without war. Britain also found itself coming out ahead as it solidified its alliance with Spain at the expense of the Franco-Spanish alliance, which further secured Britain against joint-Bourbon action. Additionally, Britain got some security about a Bourbon not inheriting the Hapsburg empire and thus returning Europe to the state it had been before the death of Carlos II. Finally, the Hapsburgs were able to reinforce Imperial authority by making Don Carlos' succession something derived from the Emperor rather than Britain and France. Lastly, the Hapsburgs added one more signature to the guarantees of the Pragmatic Sanction and a very important one at that. The notable losers in this crisis were France and the Papacy. France's lack of support for Spain severely damaged Franco-Spanish relations and put France at risk of having Spain once again be an enemy across the Pyrennes. Meanwhile, France's lack of concerted action with Britain was viewed poorly by the British and led to some attacks against the French alliance during the debate on the bill for soldiers. The Papacy also lost because its own claims to suzerainty over Parma were denied favor of the Emperor.

[1] Antonio Farnese died in OTL in February of 1731. TTL he dies in January of 1730. He is an old man and perhaps with the stress of a war in Italy from 1727 to 1729 he dies a little faster. The main point of him dying at a different time is for the sake of divergence. Other people will also die at different times or different people will be born.
[2] Just as in OTL, Austria invades and occupies Parma after the death of Antonio Farnese. In OTL they did it to extract concessions from Spain and assert Imperial authority. Here a stronger and more confident Austria is also toying with the idea of not giving Parma to Don Carlos at all.
[3] Dorothea Sophie was the OTL regent upon Antonio Farnese's death. Also, I will take this opportunity to note that TTL we do not have Henriette d'Este's false pregnancy issue because she has been married to Antonio Farnese for a shorter period of time and has less reason to believe herself pregnant.
[4] This Hapsburg debate is completely made up. The Parmese Succession is not covered much in biographies about Eugene, so I just made up an internal debate that seemed consistent with Eugene's character and Austria's OTL actions. In OTL, Austria did send an army of 30-40,000 men into Parma during the crisis. TTL Austria does likewise because it faces similar threats as OTL.
[5] In OTL, Isabel Farnese wanted to use the crisis as an excuse to take Naples and Sicily. Isabel Farnese is not a different person TTL, so she TTL she also wants to do this. Also, in OTL, the Spanish court seemed to favor an assertive stance during the crisis, which is carried over TTL. The only difference being that Patino is watching the treasury closely due to the recent war.
[6] This number of 8,000 infantry and 4,000 horsemen is taken from the OTL commitments of Britain and France. I used it TTL because it seemed like a reasonable number.
[7] In OTL, despite the Anglo-French alliance lasting more than 15 years there was always mistrust and when they got Spain into their alliance they both tried to keep Spain on their side of the alliance. Essentially they still viewed the alliance as a duo and viewed Spain as a junior and wanted to make sure that Spain was their junior rather than junior of the other. In TTL, the same views exist and are even stronger because Spain being on one side of the alliance versus another is viewed as even more important after Spain has shown its military competence again.
[8] These demands from the Hapsburgs are significantly stronger than their OTL demands because in TTL they have survived the French attack on the Rhine, so they are much more confident. They also already have French and British guarantees of the Pragmatic Sanction in TTL so they are not going to demand those as they did in OTL.
[9] So in OTL, Townshend was opposed to the Hapsburgs as a threat to the balance of power. This opposition has been overblown by history as it was not rooted in personal belief but a calculated opinion of the Hapsburgs as described by Jeremy Black. Townshend did show a willingness to consider the Hapsburgs as allies when the French started to look more and more distrustful. In TTL, the Hapsburgs look like even more of a threat so Townshend thinks of them as threatening even more so than OTL and probably closer to what many historians have claimed his him to think. Regarding this crisis specifically, in OTL, the British parliament including Walpole was in support of Spain. So in TTL with the Hapsburgs actually looking somewhat threatening, the British parliament will double down on that support. Finally, George II's personal opinion of Parma in OTL is unknown but his early opposition to the Hapsburgs in OTL was known. TTL after the Hapsburgs invested other Imperial princes with Hanoverian land, George II is much more opposed to the Hapsburgs and will see Parma as a means of punishing them.
[10] In OTL, d'Huxelles was dead when the Parmese Succession occurred. Here the crisis comes a year earlier and he is alive. In OTL, Fleury was reluctant to help out Spain and in TTL he is even more so reluctant because his fear of the Hapsburgs has been increased and his lack of faith in France's ability to contest the Hapsburgs is also increased. In OTL, without d'Huxelles, the war party was very much in favor of Spain. D'Huxelles was a huge support of the Franco-Spanish alliance in OTL and with him still alive the war party will be even louder in its opposition to Fleury's position on the Parmese succession. Nevertheless, Louis XV listened to Fleury on Parma in OTL and he does so in TTL because Fleury still has influence over the young man.
[11] This interaction between de Brancas and the Spaniards is based on the OTL interaction between the French ambassador, Rothenbourg, and the Spanish. TTL this interaction remains similar because the interaction was based on instructions from Fleury rather than the ambassador taking some independent action.
[12] In OTL, Britain did prepare a fleet and a bill to send 10,000 soldiers to the Mediterranean was drawn up. In TTL, with stronger anti-Hapsburg sentiments similar events occur. The fleet might be slightly bigger and the bill is for 12,000 rather than 10,000.
[13] This Spanish proposal is based on an OTL proposal for an all-out war against the Hapsburgs during the OTL crisis and the British support for a war against the Hapsburgs but restricted to below the Alps is also the OTL response of Britain to the OTL Spanish proposal. Some slight details with the war plan have been added but the overall plan of installing Don Carlos in Parma and conquering Naples and Sicily are based on OTL.
[14] That number does not add up to the total number of seats in Parliament because there were frequently many absentions. Also, in OTL, this bill never had to get passed because Austria backed down more quickly. TTL a more confident Austria takes longer to back down so the bill gets heard and passed. Also in TTL the bill is getting heard earlier than it probably would have been heard in OTL due to the greater anti-Hapsburg sentiments in Britain.
[15] In OTL, Admiral Charles Wager led this mission. In TTL, Wager's reputation was ruined by the Battle of Kymmenedalen during Empress Catherine's War. Accordingly, a different admiral is chosen. Since John Norris' reputation is also damaged, Charles Stewart was chosen. In OTL, the fleet left before the army bill was passed and in TTL the same thing happens. I am not sure why in OTL the fleet left without the army so I just offered a plausible reason.
[16] In OTL, even after the British showed they would support Spain, Fleury was reluctant to. TTL's Fleury is more fearful and thus also reluctant. In OTL, Fleury also thought it was a good idea to try to convince Spain that Britain would attack Spain but after some initial doubt, Spain just moved on and acted like France had not said anything. In TTL, Spain believes France even less because d'Huxelles is going to be leaking information to the Spanish. In TTL, Spain also does not tell Britain because doing so might break the Spanish and French alliance permanently.
[17] In OTL, the Austrian resolve crumbled around a similar time. In TTL, the British navy is still scary enough to get the Austrians to crumble.
[18] This agreement is notably different from the OTL one. In OTL, Austria did not yet have Britain's guarantee of the Pragmatic Sanction and was focused on getting that one rather than Spain's because Britain is more powerful than Spain. In OTL to get that guarantee from Britain, Austria had to make a concession to Britain by putting the Ostend Company on hiatus. In TTL, Austria already has Britain's guarantee and instead can focus on getting Spain's. As a result, Spain is able to get more concessions toward it with Britain's help. Those concessions are stronger protections for Don Carlos in Italy. In OTL, the Austrians were able to be more vague and make trouble through that vagueness.

Word Count: 5609

 

[Archduke]

27: Young Hanover Brave

King Friedrich Wilhelm I of Prussia reviewing the Potsdam Guards​

Not even a year removed from George II's ignominious return to Britain after the horrific experience of the British campaign in Germany, George II was already thinking of returning home, to Brunswick-Luneburg that is. However, under the terms of the Hanoverian dynasty's accession to the British throne, the king was not permitted to leave Britain and its dominions without the express approval of the parliament. Any attempt to return to Brunswick-Luneburg had to be brought to and passed by the parliament. Previously, the parliament had only approved George I's various returns to the Continent reluctantly, but George I unlike George II had not overseen the worst military defeats for Britain since the Dutch sailed up the Thames to destroy the English navy. Not to mention that George II had been in Brunswick-Luneburg less than a year before and for more than a year. The only time that the Parliament had let George I make visits so closely together was when he had been personally negotiating an Anglo-Prussian alliance [1]. So in the spring of 1730 when George II revealed his desire to go home, Walpole knew he was in for a fight with either George II to convince him not to go or with parliament to convince them to let him go.

Initially, Walpole chose to dissuade George II by explaining that the Commons would never permit the king to leave Britain when a war for Parma banging on the gates of Britain [2]. George II rather angrily explained that that war was his reason for wanting to go home. He pointed out how easily Brunswick-Luneburg had been swamped by enemy soldiers during Empress Catherine's War. George II blamed it all on his son, who George I had foolishly left in charge of the Electorate. The coxcomb, drunkard, and man-whore had been without any experience in war and as a result, he had left Brunswick-Luneburg unprepared and vulnerable to the Viennese Alliance. George II, of course, ignored the fact that he had arrived in Brunswick-Luneburg before the Viennese soldiers had and that he had chosen the ultimate strategy for Brunswick-Luneburg's defense. So with another war hovering over the horizon, George II wanted to go home and personally ensure its protection before the Viennese Alliance struck again. However, Walpole remained stout in his resistance to George II and his request. All Walpole could promise was that if war did break out, as many expected it would during those months, then Walpole would ensure that a proper defense for Brunswick-Luneburg was established and paid for by Britain. That promise in itself was a grand promise since by the law of succession Britain had no obligation to defend any of the king's non-British domains, and after the most recent war, the British parliament would certainly think carefully before defending Brunswick-Luneburg again.

Ultimately, by April the Hapsburg agitations of war had begun to quiet down after Walpole's soldier bill was passed and Rear Admiral Stewart was dispatched to the Mediterranean. By late April, peace was secure at hand with the latest Treaty of Vienna and George II was once again was talking about going home. This time, George II brought up an entirely new set of reasons including the need to see how rebuilding efforts had progressed, review the defenses, and attend to some personal governance [3]. Once more Walpole tried to discourage George II from the idea, but the King insisted and grew angry when Walpole tried to deny him. George II reminded Walpole that he had gotten permission for his father to leave time and time again and went on to say that if Walpole was no longer capable of doing that then maybe he was no longer capable of leading the government. This threat of dismissal was enough to push Walpole into bringing the matter before the Parliament. Before Parliament, Walpole argued that George II's presence in Brunswick-Luneburg was necessary to secure it against the threats it faced from all sides and once secure, Brunswick-Luneburg would serve as much less of a liability to Britain. This argument did not convince many and evoked a number of questions about why the Prince of Wales could not govern the Electorate and if he was not needed to govern the Electorate then why was not in Britain. Sir William Wyndham even asked what justification there was for the King to have the largest Civil List yet if he could not even be bothered to live in Britain. If he wanted to live in Hanover then so be it, but then Brunswick-Luneburg, not Britain would pay for him [4]. In the end, as always, Walpole was able to lead the Parliament to his desired outcome and permission for George II to return to Brunswick-Luneburg was granted. However, with many of Walpole's Whigs abstaining from the vote, Walpole's majority was barely above 80, compared to 100 he considers standard. A declining majority portended a difficult future ahead for Walpole's second ministry.

In June 1730, George II departed from Britain for the second time in his reign. With him, he took a whole host of courtiers and officials including Lord Townshend [5]. In Britain, George II left his wife, Caroline, to serve as regent and Walpole to keep the Parliament in check [6]. Out of preference, George II sailed to the Dutch Republic rather than Danish Oldenburg to land on the Continent [7]. There, George II and Townshend met with various members of the Estates-General to discuss the Anglo-Dutch alliance and the most recent war. The Dutch made it clear that they were uncomfortable about a French army having been raised and maintained on the border of the Southern Netherlands. For them, the entire war had been spent fearing that the French would invade the Southern Netherlands and conquer it. George II and Townshend were sympathetic to these concerns as they too did not look kindly upon the prospect of the French in Antwerp. Additionally, the British and Dutch were both disturbed by the French seemingly rebuilding Dunkirk's fortifications, which would be a clear violation of the Treaty of Utrecht. However, George II and Townshend's main concern remained the Hapsburgs who had greatly disturbed the balance of power in Germany and the Baltic and through their alliance with Prussia threatened both the Dutch Republic and the Electorate of Brunswick-Luneburg. Although the Dutch found it hard to agree that the Hapsburgs needed to be regarded as enemies, they did concur that the Prussians were a dangerous breed. In particular, the Dutch were frustrated over the illegal recruiting conducted by the Prussians in Dutch territory [8]. At the end of these discussions, no alterations had been made to the Anglo-Dutch relationship nor were any new joint strategies developed. Nevertheless, both sides felt better having talked and increased their understanding of each other.

After this exchange of concerns, George II briefly visited the Prince of Orange, Willem Karel Hendrik Friso, and his mother, Marie Luise, at Leeuwarden. As the Prince of Orange and the symbolic successor of William III in the Netherlands, Willem, was a suitable husband for one of George II's daughters. The boy was just nineteen years old and his spine had grown wrong, which led George II to call him a hunchback in conversation with Townshend. Nevertheless, the boy was educated and respectful and he was on a year away from becoming the Stadholder of Friesland, Groningen, and Gelre and Drenthe in his own right. Even if the boy never become the despot that William III was able to be, he was still bound to become one of the most powerful people in the Dutch Republic and as such became one of the marriage candidates in George II's mind for his eldest daughter, Anne, Princess Royal. However, George II was in no rush to marry Anne off, especially not with the Dutch alliance already seemingly secure. Thus, George II left Leeuwarden without making any promises to the boy or his mother [9].

From the Dutch Republic, George II traveled on to Hanover by land. Although George II traveled through the Bishopric of Munster to get to Brunswick-Luneburg, he did not stop to meet with any of its officials as both its ruler, Clemens August, and its first minister, Ferdinand von Plettenberg, were too far to the south at Bonn. Upon reaching Hanover, George II decided to establish himself at Herrenhausen despite his son's residence there. In their absence from one another's lives, George II's distaste for his son had gone completely unabated and Griff's distrust of his father had only grown. Still, the two were able to greet each other respectfully and kept that aura of respect through dinner and the welcoming ball for George II [10]. The peace held through the next two weeks in spite of Griff's efforts to rejoin Brunswick-Luneburg's government, gain an invitation to Britain, and push the idea of his and Wilhemine's marriage all being rebuffed strongly by George II and in spite of Griff continuing to engage in hedonistic behavior such as heavy drinking and gambling. Griff's unprincely behavior was in part a consequence of the British courtiers being very reluctant to befriend him. Although many expected that Griff would be the next king whether George II wanted him to be or not, many also realized that George II was still in good health and that for the time being Griff was politically powerless. Thus, for older men such as Townshend, there seemed to be little point in irritating George II by associating with Griff, which only furthered the isolation of Britain's heir [11].

Eventually, a peace did break but not the peace of George II and Griff. In Potsdam, when Friedrich Wilhelm I was informed of George II's arrival in Brunswick-Luneburg in July 1730, he prepared an emissary to offer a welcome to his British brother-in-law. However, Friedrich Wilhelm I told the British minister in Potsdam, Charles Dubourgay, that the emissary could not be sent until George II offered the ceremonial notification of his arrival in Brunswick-Luneburg just as his father had always done. Dubourgay passed this message on to Townshend in Hanover. Townshend's reply was that evidence of such notifications from the past was not to be found in Brunswick-Luneburg's chancery and no one from the court recalled such notifications. When Dubourgay relayed this response and also the information that George II had been in Brunswick-Luneburg for well over a week without notifying Friedrich Wilhelm I, he was visibly infuriated. However, he kept enough of his composure to avoid beating Dubourgay as he often beat his own children. Instead, Friedrich Wilhelm had his ministers pull out all the necessary receipts of notification and personal letters of George I, all with the proper seals and signatures, to prove that his brother-in-law must be mistaken. Dubourgay reviewed the documents and verified them as authentic and then passed on that assessment to Townshend. The Prussians also sent a message of their own that inferred that if George I as the father-in-law of the King in Prussia showed him such respect then George II as only his brother-in-law should show the same respect. No reply was received from George II and Townshend, which the Prussians viewed as a clear and obvious insult. A diplomatic crisis seemed to be brewing between Britain and Prussia and their rival kings [12].

Even though the Prussians were in truth the aggrieved party, George II was the one who chose to escalate the little crisis further when he instructed a party of Brunswick-Luneburger soldiers to enter the Clamei Meadow. Clamei was a tiny parcel of land without a shred of significance outside of the fact that both Brunswick-Luneburg and Brandenburg claimed it [13]. Out of the expectation of the Prussians making some kind of retaliation, George II had ordered soldiers along the border to be vigilant to any counterattack. Amid the tension of this moment, a group of Prussian recruiters and Brunswick-Luneburger soldiers made a series of tragic mistakes. The Prussian recruiters who were illegally in Brunswick-Luneburg and without proper papers tried to secretly return to Brandenburg but were easily identified by their dark blue uniforms. When they were stopped by a group of Brunswick-Luneburger soldiers swords were drawn and muskets were raised. Tensions were running high as the Prussians feared execution for their illegal presence in Brunswick-Luneburg and the Brunswick-Luneburgers feared that rather than recruiters that these men were part of some advance force for a Prussian invasion. Still, the officers of both groups tried to maintain the peace and avoid anyone's death. However, as the Brunswick-Luneburger soldiers were arresting their Prussian counterparts, one of the Prussians chose to punch one of his arresters in the face and make a run for it. A Brunswick-Luneburger chased after him but when he could not keep up, he pulled out his pistol and fired. The shot created panic among the remaining Prussians and the Brunswick-Luneburgers. A brawl broke out as the Prussians fought with their fists and whatever weapons they could pull off the Brunswick-Luneburgers. By the end of it, three Prussians and two Brunswick-Luneburgers were dead [14].

With shots fired and men dead on both sides, what was a diplomatic crisis instantly became something far far more dangerous. Both Friedrich Wilhelm and George II were furious over the series of events. Friedrich Wilhelm called out the Brunswick-Luneburger actions as murder and refused to accept any version of the story relayed by Dubourgay that stated that the Prussian had swung first. In fact, when Dubourgay first offered up that story, Friedrich Wilhelm offered to show him what a Prussian striking first would really feel like. This complete break of barely veiled threat frightened Dubourgay and he was frightened even more so when Friedrich Wilhelm took out his anger on his son Fritz and then his daughter Wilhelmine and his wife Sophie Dorothea when they tried to intervene [15]. In Hanover, George II saw the deaths of the Prussians as them getting their just due for their illegal recruiting behavior. However, from the account, he heard it was clear that the Prussians had started the fight and that they had breached the peace by violating Brunswick-Luneburg's borders and attacking its defenders. On both sides, there was a clamoring for war but also a call for caution. In Potsdam, Friedrich Wilhelm von Grumbkow under the direction of the Hapsburgs asked Friedrich Wilhelm to attempt to find a peaceful resolution to the crisis. Meanwhile, in Hanover, Gerlach Adolph von Münchhausen begged George II not to initiate a war against the much stronger Prussia. Both Friedrich Wilhelm and George II did see the sensibility in their ministers' advice and agreed to hold off on war.

Rather than war, the alternative means of resolution that Friedrich Wilhelm sought was a duel. In Friedrich Wilhelm's mind, part of this dispute was personal, it was about George II failing to show him the necessary honor and respect. Although Friedrich Wilhelm did view the killing of Prussian officers as an affront to his nation, he also viewed it as an affront to his personage. Thus, as a Christian and just king, Friedrich Wilhelm had an obligation to avoid spilling his own soldiers' blood over personal matters. Instead, personal matters and personal disputes of honor were better resolved through duels. Thus, Friedrich Wilhelm challenged George II to a duel to end their feud once and for all. He proposed Hildesheim as the neutral location of their duel with Christian Reinhold von Derschau serving as Friedrich Wilhelm's second. The choice of weapons would be swords as befit the royal blood of both Friedrich Wilhelm and George II. Rather desperately, Friedrich Wilhelm's ministers tried to convince him not to follow through on this plan, but in his frustration with everything, he sent the challenge anyway [16].

When George II received the challenge he, like his brother-in-law, was eager to solve the dispute through a personal display of arms. For George II this duel was much less about saving lives and only partially about avoiding a war. More importantly than either of their issues was George II's vivid memories of being beat repeatedly by Friedrich Wilhelm when they were both youths growing up in Hanover. Despite being the elder of the two, George II had always lost and to that day it still bothered him. With a chance to redeem a childhood of defeat, George II was practically jumping at the idea of a duel especially after Brigadier Richard Sutton agreed to serve as his second. Townshend, von Münchhausen, and everyone else, however, were doing anything but celebrating the prospect of a duel. As far as they could tell, George II was an older gentleman, more than two decades removed from actually fighting in a battle rather than commanding a battle from away. The odds of him losing the duel were running high. Even if he did not lose the duel, an injury might become gangrenous and result in George II's death shortly afterward. In either case, Townshend's political career would likely be over without the support of George II and for von Münchhausen what the duel meant for Brunswick-Luneburg was dangerously unclear. Even with these men and others all telling George II of reasons not to fight Friedrich Wilhelm he was insistent on accepting the challenge. If George II said no then he would be the coward and Friedrich Wilhelm would always have that over him. Death was better than cowardice and George II held on to the belief until Townshend said one fateful thing. In the unfortunate case that George II did lose then Griff would immediately become the King of Great Britain and Ireland and the Elector of Brunswick-Luneburg. Griff, a man who had never even seen Britain, a man who was in love with a Prussian princess, and a man who lived a life of hedonism would become the inheritor to all that was George II's. He would be responsible for the fates of Caroline, Anne, William, and all the rest. The thought sent a shiver through George II's spine and finally, George II dropped the idea of the duel. Townshend found a way to decline the prospect of a duel respectfully, but internally George II felt shame over the choice he had been forced to make [17].

With the duel off the table, the prospect of war returned. After George II rejected the Prussian demand for the Brunswick-Luneburgers to evacuate Clamei, Friedrich Wilhelm responded by mobilizing more than 40,000 men over the course of a month. With each day, the Prussians reiterated that if satisfaction was not given for the offense against the King and the death of the Prussian soldiers then Prussia would have no other recourse than to create their own satisfaction. To match the Prussian mobilization, George II ordered a mobilization of Brunswick-Luneburg's own army, activated Brunswick-Luneburg's contract for Hesse-Kassel's mercenaries, and called upon the Dutch Republic and Denmark-Norway to fulfill their treaty obligations. Even with all three of these states consenting to provide help, their joint army could not match the numbers of Prussia's initial mobilization, let alone a full Prussian mobilization. Altogether, they numbered approximately, 37,000 men, more than half being from Brunswick-Luneburg, a little over 10,000 being Hessians, just 5,000 being Dutch, and a paltry 1,200 being Danes. In contrast, the Prussians were mobilizing 44,000 men. Worse yet, those 44,000 men were all mustering at Magdeburg just a hundred miles from Brunswick-Luneburg while the Hessians were separated from Brunswick-Luneburg by both Saxony and Brunswick-Wolfenbuttel, the Dutch were all the way in the Low Countries, and Danes were blocked by the Holstein-Gottorp duchies. Despite this inferiority and these difficulties, George II refused to back down, especially after he had already backed down from the duel [18].

Faced with the threat of war breaking out across northern Germany, Emperor Charles VI offered the mediate the dispute as the Holy Roman Emperor, liege of both the Elector of Brunswick-Luneburg and the Elector of Brandenburg, George II and Friedrich Wilhelm respectively [19]. This offer was firmly rejected by George II because he did not consider Charles VI to be a remotely unbiased and favorable mediator. In George II's eyes, Charles VI was still an ally of Prussia and would clearly side with Prussia again. If George II accepted mediation then Charles VI would use that mediation to strip George II of even more land. Interestingly, Friedrich Wilhelm also declined Charles VI's interference out of the fear that Charles VI might demand future favors from Friedrich Wilhelm in return for a favorable outcome to mediation. Furthermore, neither George II nor Friedrich Wilhelm wished to unnecessarily reinforce Imperial authority by giving up their freedom of action in this dispute between the two of them.

While George II rejected Charles VI's overtures, he and Townshend sent overtures to the Wittelsbach union of Bavaria, the Palatinate, and Cologne. George II and Townshend were interested in forming an alliance with the group to oppose the Prussian and possibly Imperial aggression. As part of these negotiations, Ferdinand von Plettenburg personally traveled to Hanover to meet with both George II and Townshend. Plettenburg began by talking about a 14-year alliance between Bavaria, the Palatinate, and Cologne. That alliance would include British peacetime and wartime subsidies for each of the electors, British support of Karl III Philipp of the Palatinate's claims to Julich and Berg over the claims of Friedrich Wilhelm, Brunswick-Luneburg ending its interference in the Archbishop-Elector of Cologne's holding of Hildesheim, British support for the Archbishop of Cologne succeeding to the Bishopric of Liege and numerous other bishoprics, British payment of the arrears in Hapsburg subsidies for Cologne, a British guarantee of a Spanish payment of one million piastres to Bavaria from previous Bavarian-Spanish treaties, and potentially the coordination of electoral votes to select a new Holy Roman Emperor upon the death of Charles VI. These demands seemed extreme to both George II and Townshend and were refused. Instead of 14-years, Townshend offered 2 years. For subsidies, Townshend could only offer wartime subsidies. Regarding Julich and Berg, George II would only recognize the claim of Karl III Philipp in return for support from the Wittelsbachs in reasserting Brunswick-Luneburg's claims to Bremen-Verden, Lauenburg, Grubenhagen, and Calenberg. Finally, Townshend wanted the Elector of Mainz included in the alliance. Yet while Plettenburg easily listed off the Wittelsbach demands he balked at the suggestion of reciprocal demands from George II. This poor opening to Anglo-Wittelsbach negotiations hurt the resolve of George II who realized that even if these negotiations succeeded later, later might be too late with the Prussian army already at Brunswick-Luneburg's throat [20].

Friedrich Wilhelm's government also reached out to its allies and friends to secure support in the coming war. Friedrich Wilhelm first reached out to King Augustus the Strong of Poland who as Elector of Saxony was in a prime position to cut off any Hessian reinforcement of Brunswick-Luneburg. Augustus II, however, was reluctant to engage in another war so soon after the last one. Augustus II's desire for glory had been sated for the moment and he was more interested in enjoying the frivolities of life [21]. Also, Augustus II was very concerned with making the Wettin succession in Poland secure, which would be threatened by attacking and aggravating the British king. Thus, rather than offering troops, Augustus II offered to mediate the conflict. Friedrich Wilhelm declined the offer as he still was desirous of war. Without Saxony blocking the Hessians, Brunswick-Wolfenbuttel also rejected Friedrich Wilhelm's call for help. Only the Holstein-Gottorp rulers, Charles Augustus of Bremen-Verden and King Charles Frederick of Finland were even willing to entertain the thought of war. However, the war they entertained was one against Denmark-Norway [22]. They offered to let Prussian soldiers into Holstein to block any Danish-Norwegian effort to support Brunswick-Luneburg and even suggested that a preemptive strike against Denmark-Norway might serve them all well. Although Friedrich Wilhelm appreciated their willingness to fight along his side again, he demurred from engaging in a war against Brunswick-Luneburg, Britain, Denmark-Norway, the Dutch Republic, and Hesse-Kassel with just Bremen-Verden, Holstein, and Finland as his support.

Regarding British support, George II actually found that hard to come by. Although Townshend was at George II's side and was willing to consider the idea of war. Walpole in Britain was never favorable toward the thought of war and Townshend also cooled toward it after the difficulties encountered in finding a reasonable alliance with the Wittelsbachs. George II was informed that the British parliament was unlikely to support Brunswick-Luneburg in the prospective war. Angrily George II pointed out that they had already voted for 12,000 men to fight the Hapsburgs in Italy. What difference did it make if they fought the Hapsburg ally, Prussia, in Germany? As Walpole wrote it made all the difference in the world. The proposed war in Italy had been one agreed to by Parliament due to Parliament's interest in supporting its friendship with Spain. On the other hand, a war in Germany for a landlocked electorate provided few benefits for Britain. When George II tried to argue that he was the king and that Parliament was supposed to serve him, Walpole reminded George II that both he and his father had agreed that Britain did not have to protect the German dominion of the Hanoverian dynasty. Without even a mediocre level of parliamentary support for the war, Townshend instructed Dubourgay to inform the Prussians that Britain would play no role in a war between Brunswick-Luneburg and Prussia. In reply, Friedrich Wilhelm realized some British sailors that had been detained following the killing of the Prussian soldiers [23].

In the end, both George II and Friedrich Wilhelm found themselves lacking the considerable help they had hoped to rally. With just a medium composite army, George II had no confidence in his ability to hold, let alone repel, the Prussian army. On the other side, Friedrich Wilhelm began to realize the pointlessness of the war and the potential for an ugly result. As a consequence, both kings gave in to the many advisers and ministers on both sides arguing for peace [24]. For a few weeks, letters went forward and back between Potsdam and Hanover until George II agreed to remove his troops from Clamei and release all captured Prussians. In return, the Prussians consented to not enter Clamei without any soldiers of their own and to demobilize their army. Finally, the two sides agreed to have their dispute mediated by two other princes, one selected by each side. George II named Wilhelm, regent of Hesse-Kassel, and Friedrich Wilhelm named Friedrich II, Duke of Saxe-Gotha-Altenburg. The date of the mediation was set for December of 1730 and the set was set in Hanover [25]. With a peaceful solution in the process of being designed, the Clamei Crisis came to an end, soldiers stood down, and normal relations resumed. In November, weeks later than George II had intended, he returned to Britain with Townshend and the rest of his retinue. Griff remained in Brunswick-Luneburg.

[1] The second trip being the one in 1727 when George I died in OTL and in TTL.
[2] In OTL, Parliament as far as I am aware never refused the king when he asked for leave and under Walpole, a bill was passed that allowed George II to return to Hanover whenever he wanted without having to ask Parliament. TTL, Parliament will probably not vote negatively even now but the strength of a ministry was not determined by having a majority. Instead, it was determined by the strength of its majorities. If a bill could not pass with close to a 100 majority then the ministry was expected to collapse. So here the threat is not that Parliament will vote no but rather that Parliament will not vote yes strongly, which will weaken the perceived dominance of Walpole. This is why Walpole tries to dissuade George II.
[3] George II just wants to go home as he has found Britain to be frigid toward him after his defeat abroad.
[4] Wyndham is a Jacobite, which is why his dissent is not based around the Prince of Wales but rather the overall disappointing reign of the Hanoverians.
[5] Whenever George I or George II went to Germany they often took one of the principal leaders of the government. George I took Stanhope and Townshend and George II took Townshend and later Carteret.
[6] Whenever George II left for Germany, he left Caroline as his regent.
[7] George II always sailed from Britain to the Dutch Republic. He never used the Bremish ports or the friendly Danish ports in Oldenburg. Andrew C. Thompson rather oddly and vaguely argues that he did this because it "shortened the land journey". However, in OTL, George II's possession of the Bremish ports would have meant that George II could have sailed directly and avoided any land journey at all, so I tend to believe that Thompson misinterpreted whatever document he read to give him that impression. Rather than George II sailing to the Dutch Republic to shorten the land journey, his choice of port within the Dutch Republic was probably chosen based on which one shortened the land journey. The only other option is that George II was also considering landing in France (the only next set of friendly ports farther away from Hanover than the Dutch Republic), which in my opinion is a near ludicrous thought as George II never visited France as King of Great Britain. So rather than the choice to sail to the Dutch Republic over some other state being due to "land distance" calculations, I am saying that George II just preferred to go through the Dutch Republic. There are political reasons including getting to personally visit the major leaders of the Dutch Republic and there also might be personal reasons such as George II not being a naval man and thus being less comfortable with traveling completely by sea. It should also be noted that for George II, traveling by sea to Bremen would have been faster. George II took an immense retinue and amount of baggage with him whenever he traveled to Hanover.
[8] During the 1720s-1730s, the Dutch and Prussians had a number of issues including Prussian recruiting issues. The Dutch and Prussians almost went to war in 1733 in OTL, which speaks to the hostility between the two governments.
[9] In OTL, Negotiations for Willem Hendrik Friso and Anne's marriage took 6 years. Given that in 1733 Friso submitted the official request to Leeuwarden to be married and that in 1734 the couple was married, OTL negotiations would have started in 1727 or 1728. In TTL, the war would have gotten in the way of negotiations starting so rather than negotiations starting in either of those years, they start in 1730.
[10] George II and Frederick of Wales managed to have respectful relations for much of Frederick of Wales' adult life. They did not like each other, but they managed to hold their tongues with one another in public, in contrast to what other TLs claim.
[11] Politicians and courtiers picking between the King's party and the Prince's party was always a thing. Oftentimes those who felt that they could gain the favor of the king and gain pensions and land from him would support him and denounce the Prince's party. Whereas those who fell from power or were blocked from power rallied around the Prince.
[12] This diplomatic crisis is based on the OTL diplomatic crisis that occurred during George II's first visit to Hanover. Given the TTL hostility between George II and Friedrich Wilhelm due to their war against each other that crisis still begins when George II purposely insults Friedrich Wilhelm.
[13] Also, like in OTL, George II escalates the crisis by bringing soldiers into Clamei Meadow, a disputed acre of land.
[14] In OTL, the crisis escalated even further when Prussian recruiters who were legally in Brunswick-Luneburg were arrested. In TTL, the recent war means that Prussian soldiers will not be granted papers to enter Hanover, so they do not have papers and have to enter Hanover illegally. This raises the stakes for the Prussians. Meanwhile, the recent invasion of Hanover by the Prussians means that the Hanoverians are also afraid. Due to these two increases in tension the OTL arrest is botched and killings occur. In OTL, even arrests were enough to bring Prussia and Hanover to the brink of war, so deaths certainly will. Also in OTL, the killing of a recruiting officer in the Dutch Republic almost led to a Prussian invasion of the Dutch Republic in 1733.
[15] In OTL, Friedrich Wilhelm still treated Dubourgay with decorum throughout the crisis. In TTL, with Prussians dead that decorum goes out the window. The beatings of Fritz, Wilhelmine, and Sophie Dorothea occurred in OTL and will be even worse in TTL with Friedrich Wilhelm's emotions running much hotter after the death of Prussian soldiers.
[16] In OTL, Friedrich Wilhelm challenged George II to a duel over the tensions during the summer of 1729.
[17] In OTL, George II seems to have accepted the duel according to Jakob Friedrich von Bielfeld's record of the incident. Lord Hervey also indicates the same but Hervey's memoirs are practically fiction. In TTL, two things working against George II's inclination to accept the duel are that he has had his physicality tested recently and due to the hardships of the retreat from Hanover, come out worse from it. Additionally, George II dislikes Frederick of Wales even more than OTL by this point, which makes him less willing to chance forfeiting his life. In OTL, the reason the duel did not occur was that Friedrich Wilhelm had recently been ill and Baron von Borck used that recent illness to convince Friedrich Wilhelm in the foolhardiness of a duel.
[18] These numbers are all derived from the comptemporary source on the OTL crisis, A Letter from an English Traveller to his Friend at London: Relating to the Differences betwixt the Courts of Prussia and Hanover. The numbers for the Dutch are based on treaty obligations and for the Hessians on contract obligations, so they are the same as OTL. For the Danish-Norwegian number of 1,200, I am not sure why this contingent was offered in OTL, but I assume that Denmark-Norway just wanted to sent a single regiment, so that number would also be the same as OTL. The Prussian number of 44,000 I matched with OTL out of simplicity and may have been based on the peacetime disposition of Prussian soldiers.
[19] In OTL, Imperial interference in the crisis was rejected. In TTL, George II has even less reasons to be amenable to Imperial interference while Friedrich Wilhelm still has no need for it.
[20] In OTL, Townshend and Plettenburg used George II's trip to Hanover to open negotiations for an alliance. In OTL, the Wittelsbachs demanded mainly the same stuff. These demands already seem to be asking for everything they could possibly want, so I was not sure what else they could ask for. The only additional demand in TTL is the Wittelsbachs asking for George II to help them elect a Wittelsbach emperor. In OTL, in contrast to what some historians have claimed but in line with what Jeremy Black's recent analysis has found, Townshend rejected the Wittelsbach demands as too much and tried to negotiate them down. In OTL, Townshend's concern was Hanoverian influence in Mecklenburg and protection for Gibraltar. In TTL, Hanover has also completely lost influence in Mecklenburg and lost Gibraltar, so the focus is now on re-empowering Hanover. A stronger Hanover can support British policy on the Continent. In OTL, Plettenburg rejected Townshend's counteroffer and in TTL this counteroffer requires even more military support from the Wittelsbachs, which they were reluctant enough to give OTL.
[21] In OTL, Augustus II did not want to get involved in a war over this dispute and offered to mediate. In TTL, Augustus will have less incentive to get involved militarily, so he also stays out.
[22] In OTL, Brunswick-Wolfenbuttel was a British ally, but having taken land from Hanover they are now a Prussian ally. Also, in OTL, the Holstein-Gottorps were not strong enough to contact. In TTL, they are and they are also unfriendly with Denmark-Norway and Britain, so they are ideal targets for Prussia to make allies.
[23] In OTL, Britain refused to back up George II in this crisis and in TTL after having already lost a war in Brunswick-Luneburg they are definitely not supporting George II in this war. The only reason Townshend seems supportive is that he is personally with George II and knows that he can improve his personal relationship with George II by acting friendly to his interests. Still, in OTL Townshend had to order Dubourgay not to talk about the crisis with Prussia as that would indicate British involvement. A difference from OTL is that in OTL Prussia immediately released a sailor arrested from Britain. In TTL, multiple sailors are arrested, not just one, because overall relations between Prussia and Britain are less friendly than OTL due to their war. Ultimately, in TTL those sailors are arrested once Britain confirms it will stay out.
[24] In OTL, with time the crisis died down and an agreement for mediation was reached. In TTL, with time and a failure to gain allies, the crisis also dies down.
[25] In OTL, the mediation was between Brunswick-Wolfenbuttel for Britain and Saxe-Gotha for Prussia. In TTL, Brunswick-Wolfenbuttel is no longer friendly enough with Britain so George II picks a different more friendly German prince.

Word Count: 6271

 

[Archduke]

28: A Giant's Fall

Maria Menshikova, Empress of All Russia​

On January 25, 1730 (February 5), Peter II was coronated as the Emperor and Autocrat of All Russia in Saint Petersburg. This coronation followed all the customs and traditions that had been established or affirmed during Empress Catherine's coronation five years previously. First, Peter II and the Russian court descended from Saint Petersburg to Moscow with Peter II stopping in Vsesvyatsk to pray and fast for a week. When Peter II did enter Moscow, he did so in a carriage drawn by eight horses with his tutor and companion, Andrei Osterman, on one side, and his generalissimo and the de facto leader of his government, Prince Aleksander Menshikov, on the other side. The party was energetically greeted by thousands of Moscovites who had not seen a ruler in years. As tradition dictated, they stopped at the Chapel of Our Lady of Iveron and paid respect to the Blessed Virgin of Iveron's icon. Finally, Peter II entered the Kremlin and retired to his palace. In the meantime, a three-day holiday was instated, local prisoners were pardoned, fines were remitted, proclamations read, and receptions held. The next morning, the Emperor accompanied by all of his generals marched from the Red Porch to the Cathedral of the Dormition and carried with them the imperial regalia. Once in the Cathedral of the Dormition, Peter II underwent a series of rituals and prayers under the guidance of the Metropolitan and Archbishop of Moscow, Archbishop Theophanes Prokopovich. Finally, Peter II took the imperial crown out of Prokopovich's hands and placed it on his own head. Further prayers were made and cheers were shouted and songs were sung to praise the new Emperor and Autocrat of All Russia.

In spite of Peter II's coronation, he remained a boy no older than fourteen. In the face of his youth, the will of Empress Catherine still dictated that the Supreme Privy Council rule in his name, and on that Supreme Privy Council only one voice ruled, Menshikov's. Even though the Supreme Privy Council was supposed to operate by majority rule, even though the exiled King Charles Frederick of Finland was the President of the Supreme Privy Council, and even though Menshikov could at not even call a single one of the six other members of the council his friend, he and he alone determined the direction of Russia. Menshikov alone ruled Russia despite what any will nor coronation implied. Not even the fact that almost the entire aristocracy of Russia despised Menshikov as an upstart and usurper nor the fact that Peter II had already clashed with Menshikov over Menshikov's incessant interference in Peter's life could stop Menshikov from being the first-man of Russia. So long as he maintained the loyalty of the army, particularly the Guard, and a decent level of tolerance from Peter II, Menshikov was supreme. The supreme nature of Menshikov's power was displayed by how he stopped even visiting the meetings of the Supreme Privy Council. He just made decisions without them entirely [1]. The nobles viewed this behavior as a usurpation but the nation bent to Menshikov's sheer will and acted as if he, not Peter II was the ruler of Russia. When returning to Saint Petersburg from the far east, Vitus Bering made the report of his findings to Menshikov rather than to the Emperor [2]. Furthermore, Bering asked Menshikov not the Supreme Privy Council for the funding to go on a second expedition. Another example is seen with Christoph von Munnich writing letters to both Peter II and Menshikov to declare the completion of the Lagoda Canal in the summer of 1730 [3]. In these letters, Munnich made the traditional praises to the Emperor for his support but also praised Menshikov for all the work he had done on starting the canal. The fact that Menshikov had transferred the task to his friend, Skornyakov-Pisarev, who Peter I later arrested for incompetence and corruption went completely unsaid.

The power of Menshikov can also be seen beyond Russia's borders in Russia's foreign policy. Among the old aristocracy, many did not appreciate the very adventurous foreign policy of Peter I that had seen Russian armies sent to far-off places like Mecklenburg, which held no interest to the Russians. Yet under Catherine I, Menshikov and Osterman had stood by that policy, and even with Peter I and Catherine gone, Menshikov and Osterman still perpetuated that policy despite continued aristocratic resistance to it. Support for this policy is the extent of Menshikov's involvement in foreign affairs as he let Osterman do most of the work including figuring out exactly how to implement this policy. Under Osterman's guidance, Peter II's Russia remained allied to the Holy Roman Emperor alongside whom Russia ensured the weakness of Poland, protected against the Ottomans, and maintained the allegiance of Prussia. In the Baltic, Russia continued to treat the husbands of the daughters of the late Catherine generously and retained them as allies of Russia. Russia continued to support the claims of King Charles Frederick of Finland to the Dano-Norwegian-held Schleswig and continued to pay him 50,000 pounds a year until Schleswig in its entirety was returned to him. In return, Charles Frederick made his ports available to Russia and quartered Russian soldiers in his land, which provided Russia with a much-needed buffer against Sweden. Russia's also supported Charles Frederick's cousins, Charles Augustus, Duke of Bremen-Verden, and Adolf Friedrich, Prince-Bishop of Lubeck, with guarantees of protection in return for promises of support in Russia's Baltic affairs. Another relationship that Osterman held on to was the Russo-Mecklenburger alliance. Despite Duke Karl Leopold of Mecklenburg-Schwerin and his Russian wife, Tsarevna Catherine Ivanovna, being separated, Russia promised him its military support should his difficulties with the knights of Mecklenburg-Schwerin arise again. In exchange, he gave the Russian navy the rights to dock at Wismar. In Courland, Menshikov had a greater degree of involvement because he treated its rulers, Maurice of Saxony and Anna Ivanovna, as practical puppets. Should they ever disagree with that treatment Menshikov had Peter Lacy's army at the ready to depose them both and place someone else on the throne of Courland. Through these relations, Menshikov and Osterman kept pushing Peter I's vision for Russian domination of the Baltic and Russian involvement in Germany.

As powerful as Menshikov may have seemed and felt in early 1730, cracks were beginning to show in his grip on Russia and the Emperor. Already in 1729, Menshikov and Peter II had clashed over some small monetary matters and Peter II not showing enough affection for his fiancee, Menshikov's daughter Maria. In 1730, these clashes continued as Menshikov reprimanded Peter II for not taking his education seriously enough, not spending time with Maria, and spending too much time engaging in dissolute behavior with the young aristocrats of Russia [4]. None of these criticisms had their intended effect on Peter II who did not care to change his behavior for Menshikov's pleasure. If anything, Peter II's willingness to behave in such a manner was only increased by Menshikov's interference. At the same time, similar efforts from Osterman to cajole Peter II into studying harder so that he might emulate his grandfather, Peter I, failed miserably. Peter II's elder sister, Natalya, could also do little to inspire him to better himself [5]. Instead, Peter II avoided meetings with the government and spent his hunting and socializing. Peter II's disdain for the navy and reluctance to participate in army matters was of particular concern. However, when Menshikov and Osterman approached him on the need to spend more time with the military he bite back that Russia was at peace and that they should act like it. If Russia was at war then Peter II would lead its armies, but in peace, Peter saw no need for spending hours on end with the military [6].

The reason for Peter II's drift away from the influence of Menshikov and Osterman and toward self-indulgence can be placed firmly at the feet of the Dolgorukov family. The Dolgorukov family was made of old aristocrats who disliked the autocratic behavior of Peter I and now of Menshikov and instead desired that power for themselves. Despite some good maneuvering by them during Empress Catherine's rule, the Dolgorukov's held only a single seat on the Supreme Privy Council, Vasily Lukich's, and a single member of their family was a field marshal, Vasily Vladimirovich. These numbers were matched by Menshikov alone being a member of the council and being the Generalissimo. Worse yet they were outdone by the Dolgorukovs' direct opponents, the Golitsyns, who had a field marshal Mikhail Mikhailovich, and two seats on the council, one held by Marshal Golitsyn and the other by Dmitry Mikhailovich. Even though the Golitsyns despised Menshikov just as much as the Dolgorukov's, the Golitsyns were not willing to depose Menshikov and hand power to Dolgorukovs. However, the Dolgorukovs had one advantage over both Menshikov and the Golitsyns, that was the fact that Ivan Alekseevich Dolgorukov had been a member of Peter II's household since 1725 and by 1730 had become the boy's closest friend.

Through Ivan, the Dolgorukovs steadily gained influence over Peter II. They took advantage of Peter's desire to ride through and of Saint Petersburg to separate Peter from Menshikov who was far too old and too busy to ride for fun with a child. Instead of Menshikov, Ivan rode with Peter every day and talked with him about all of Peter's concerns including his distaste for Menshikov. Ivan also led Peter II to the Dolgorukov estates outside of Saint Petersburg where Peter could breathe and talk freely, which he often felt unable to do in the confines of Menshikov's palace on Vasilievsky Island to where Peter had been taken after Catherine's death. While he was at their estates, Vasily Lukich and Alexey Grigoryevich made sure that the Emperor had nothing to want for and had no responsibilities or tasks to concern him. While Peter II had to study and face constant judgment while with Menshikov, at the Dolgorukov's estates Peter could hunt, eat, play, do anything freely. This contrast between the liberal lifestyle he had with the Dolgorukovs and the more ordered one expected of him with Menshikov naturally led to the youth favoring the Dolgorukovs over Menshikov. The constant disparagement of Menshikov by the Dolgorukovs in private with Peter also added to Peter's drift away from Menshikov [7].

Menshikov was not blind to Peter's drifting especially when Peter II as their arguments continued. Still, Menshikov carried on and Peter continued to tolerate living in Menshikov's palace in a fractious peace. A year after Peter II's ascension to the Russian throne, at the beginning of May 1730, that peace saw one of its more violent episodes. At the time, Peter's indifference toward Maria Menshikova was particularly noticeable and when Menshikov saw what essentially amount to love letters written by Peter to his aunt, Duchess Elizabeth of Bremen-Verden, he reproached Peter. Menshikov called out Peter for being a poor partner to Maria as he had done many times before and even hinted at the sinfulness of Peter's behavior toward Elizabeth [8]. Peter in turn asked Menshikov whether stealing from the crown was sinful because Peter did not believe Menshikov could have amassed so much wealth on his own. This belief had in part been driven by the Dolgorukovs relaying the stories and accounts of Menshikov's corruption under Peter I. Peter II added to these charges the charge that Menshikov was a traitor to Russia who was giving Russian money away to Charles Frederick freely. Obviously, Menshikov denied these charges of corruption and pointed out that by treaty, Russia was obliged to pay Charles Frederick an annual pension until Schleswig was recovered. That reply led to Peter II exclaiming that the only reason that Schleswig had not been recovered was that Menshikov had abandoned his post during Empress Catherine's War. Peter reminded Menshikov that he had left the German front to return home months before the war had ended. In the wake of this heated episode, Peter chose to take his leave of Menshikov's palace and returned to Peterhof Palace [9].

In the ensuing weeks, the distance between Peter and Menshikov became apparent as Peter visited Vasilievsky Island infrequently. The event that eventually awakened Menshikov to just how far Peter had drifted from him was when Peter declined to visit Vasilievsky Island on July 17 (July 28) when Menshikov opened a newly constructed part of his place that commemorated his victory at Munster. Even with most of Russia's generals including Marshal Golitsyn and Marshal Dolgorukov in attendance, Peter declined Menshikov's invitation. When Menshikov insisted, Peter said that he did not believe that it was right to celebrate Maurice of Saxony's victory without him. This statement directly stripped Menshikov of his role as the victor of Munster and thus the conqueror of Brunswick-Luneburg. Menshikov was shaken by this attack as he felt that even with his differences with Peter that his military record remained unimpeachable and that his role as generalissimo could never be taken away from him. However, with Peter now crediting someone else with the crowning triumph of Menshikov's career, Menshikov became seriously concerned that his place in the court of Russia was not secure at all [10].

This feeling of insecurity led to Menshikov finally calling for the marriage of Peter II and Maria Menshikova to take place. Instantly and without much elaboration, Peter rejected Menshikov's demand. When Menshikov insisted that Peter was engaged to Maria and that she go ahead and marry, Peter answered that although he and Maria were engaged there was no need to rush their marriage. Peter would rather wait until he was 25 before marrying [11]. The thought of Maria and Peter not being married for another decade perturbed Menshikov who feel his health faltering and knew he would not last another ten years. So again Menshikov insisted and again he was denied. At this point, Menshikov realized that he could force Peter to marry Maria, so he instead proposed that Natalya should get married. Although Menshikov had previously held some ideas of marrying Natalya to his own son, Aleksander, Menshikov instead chose to propose that proposals for her marriage to the Crown Prince of Prussia, the Electoral Prince of Saxony, the Prince of Brunswick-Luneburg, a Bavarian prince, or even a Holstein-Gottorp should be accepted. Menshikov even wrote up instructions for Russia's ambassadors in London and Vienna to investigate the potential terms for these matches more closely. When Peter caught wind of this he was outraged and vigorously refused the idea that Natalya should be sent off to some foreign court [12]. This reaction was the result of Peter's reliance on his sister and had been exactly the sort of response that Menshikov had wanted. Menshikov replied that unless Peter married Maria, Natalya would be sent abroad and if Peter tried to stop Menshikov then he would be the one responsible for breaking Russia's relationships with one of Europe's powers. The stratagem was probably a bluff because Menshikov doubtless still had hopes to marry Natalya to his son and because Osterman may have intervened in favor of the Emperor against a scheme to send Natalya abroad. Still, the stratagem had its intended effect. Peter consented to marry Maria in November of that year on the condition that any discussion of Natalya's own prospects being put on terminated until Peter chose otherwise.

For the next few months, Peter and Maria saw each other more consistently as the preparations for the marriage were finalized and put into order. Despite many members of Russia's aristocracy, especially the Dolgorukovs, trying to dissuade Peter from going through with the marriage, the Emperor refused to break his word. Peter was determined to see the marriage through and to protect his sister from Menshikov's plots. Finally, on November 8 (November 19), 1730, Peter II and Maria Menshikov were married at Saint Peter and Paul Cathedral, which was still under construction. Afterward, a huge feast was held at Menshikov's palace with tens of courses and thousands of guests while food and money were also distributed to the inhabitants of Saint Petersburg. To cap off the night, Peter and Maria were carried off to bed where Menshikov ensured that practically the whole court of Russia witnessed evidence of the consummation of the marriage. Menshikov wanted no doubts cast about their marriage and the legitimacy of any of Maria's children. This marriage proved to be the pinnacle of Menshikov's career.

Even though Peter married Maria and treated her as his wife and with all required respect, he hated Menshikov for the vile inference in his life and his childhood [13]. Peter was determined to get his revenge on Menshikov and intended to never forget or forgive Menshikov's many insults against Peter and his authority as Emperor. While Menshikov finally relaxed after having secured Maria's marriage, Peter began to scheme with the Dolgorukovs to bring about Menshikov's downfall. This scheming happened right under Menshikov's nose as the Dolgorukovs were united in their desire to take down Menshikov and none of them defected. Meanwhile, Peter II's visits to the Dolgorukovs had become such a frequent and usual occurrence that nothing was thought of him spending even more time with them. Just weeks after Peter and Maria's marriage rumors of letters between Menshikov and Charles Frederick emerged that suggested that Menshikov had offered to help Charles Frederick usurp Peter in return for being made King of Finland. Of course, the claim was false and the letters probably fabricated since Menshikov would have no desire to usurp the possibility of his own grandchildren ruling Russia [14]. However, added to these rumors were letters from some officers of the Menshikov's German campaign describing excesses and corruption by Menshikov.

By December 4 (December 15), 1730, Peter II had enough material to accuse Menshikov of high treason, corruption, and embezzlement of crown funds. Accordingly, Peter II ordered the Majors Semyon Andreevich Saltykov and Grigory Dmitrievich Yusupov of the Preobrazhensky Life Guards and Major Stepan Andreevich Shepelev Semyonovsky Life Guards to no longer obey any orders from Menshikov and to arrest him. He additionally ordered the commandant of the Peter and Paul Fortress, Yegor Ivanovich Famintsyn, a supporter of Menshikov, to step down or be arrested for disobedience. The coup saw the Guards rather hesitantly cross over to Vasilievsky Island and surround Menshikov's palace because many of the guards were conflicted about their loyalty to Menshikov. Even though none of the guards were willing to disobey their Emperor, few of them wished that harm would befall Menshikov or worse yet that they would be responsible for that harm. Fortunately, Menshikov's health had declined in the days leading up to the coup so when he saw the soldiers baring arms before his door he chose not to fight back. He believed that he would not live much longer, especially not with the stress of governance, so he was better off avoiding bloodshed that might jeopardize Maria's place as Peter's wife [15].

Following his arrest, Menshikov asked to be brought to Peter to make one last appeal. However, when Menshikov reached Peterhof Palace he found Peter II surrounded by all of his enemies from the Dolgorukovs to the Golitsyns to even Golovkin and Osterman. Everyone had fallen in line with the plot. At that point, Menshikov realized that he was done and there was no possibility of recovery. Rather than beg for clemency or to keep his position, Menshikov offered to retreat to Ukraine and finish out his days on his estate there. All Menshikov asked in return was that no harm should be done to his daughter and that her marriage with Peter should remain intact. Peter consented to let Menshikov retire to Ukraine because he saw an old and broken man before him who could threaten him from Ukraine. However, Peter made no promises about Maria's fate. Furthermore said that the results of his investigations revealed that Menshikov had stolen 1 million rubles from the crown, which Menshikov would now have to return. Menshikov accepted the situation as it was and made the necessary reparations by selling his palace on Vasilievsky Island and all of its possessions [16]. Within a week, Menshikov was gone. Menshikov had served as Russia's de facto ruler for a year and a half by that point and during that time his rule was not challenged once until he was arrested. Menshikov's stable reign was only made possible by the Emperor's willingness to tolerate his usurpation of powers but soon after he lost that tolerance, Menshikov's rule crumbled. With a single set of orders and over the course of a single day, Menshikov fell from being the first man of Russia to a retired country gentleman banished from the court of Saint Petersburg to the quiet plains of Ukraine.

[1] Menshikov was known for not attending the Supreme Privy Council after Catherine's death in OTL. In TTL, Menshikov feels even more powerful and so he would have even less reason to visit the council.
[2] Bering came back to Saint Petersburg in 1730 in OTL and with how far away he was from the war, I do not think the war would have affected his return.
[3] Munnich finished the canal in 1730 in OTL. I see the canal still being finished in 1730 because when the war ends, Russia will have so many mobilized soldiers for Munnich to use in constructing the canal that he can make up for a slow down during the war.
[4] In OTL, during the short months that Menshikov was with Peter II they clashed over a lot because Peter II seems to have been a free-spirited kid and Menshikov was trying to instill some discipline and probity in him. Neither Peter II nor Menshikov's personalities are any different, so these clashes still happen. Peter II wants to be free to do as he wants and Menshikov wants to control him.
[5] In OTL, Osterman and Natalya also tried to influence him but they both lost their influence over time because of Peter II's free-spiritedness.
[6] Peter II's reluctance to engage in government or military duties was known in OTL and again he has the same personality as OTL, so TTL he acts the same.
[7] The Dolgorukovs' role in Peter II drifting away from Menshikov is the same as OTL because the Dolgorukov goal of taking power is still the same.
[8] In OTL, Peter II had a weird obsession with his aunt that seemed to border on attraction. In TTL, Elizabeth has gone to Germany, but Peter will still have memories of her and her beauty, so that obsession has translated into letters.
[9] In OTL, Peter II left Menshikov Palace while Menshikov was taken with illness, and Peter II was shown the documents revealing Menshikov's role in his father's death. This occurred only a few months into Peter II's reign. Here, Menshikov avoided falling seriously ill so his opponents never got the chance to show those leaders. Instead, Menshikov and Peter II clashed for close a year before Peter II felt the need to leave Menshikov's palace.
[10] In OTL, Menshikov was shown that he lost his hold on Peter II through a similar incident in which Peter II refused to attend a ceremony at Menshikov Palace.
[11] In OTL, Peter II implied that he wanted to marry at 25.
[12] In OTL, Peter II was attached to his sister, so I cannot imagine him being willing to part with her.
[13] Again in OTL, the trigger for Menshikov's downfall was the revelation of his role in the murder of Tsarevich Alexei. In TTL, Peter II has not been shown those letters, so a different trigger serves and that is Menshikov threatening Natalya and coercing Peter II into a marriage.
[14] In OTL, the Dolgorukovs fabricated a letter in which Menshikov was going to usurp Peter II himself and was getting bribed by Prussia. Although Menshikov may have been getting bribes from Prussia (Menshikov was a corrupt individual), he would not have usurped Peter II. In TTL, the Dolgorukovs fabricate a similarly bogus letter with similar plausible issues. I do not think highly enough of most of the Dolgorukovs for them to have a better more authentic-seeming letter.
[15] In OTL, Menshikov was arrested by these men and they received promotions for making the arrests. I imagine that nothing personal went into their decisions to arrest Menshikov and simply the prospect of promotion and loyalty to the Emperor made them do it. Overall, in my opinion, the loyalty of the Guards to the Emperor is too strong for Menshikov to survive losing the support of the Emperor. Menshikov does make things easier because he thinks he is dying but in the end, what matters is the Emperor's orders.
[16] In OTL, Peter II originally wanted to send Menshikov to a desolate post. In TTL, Menshikov commands greater respect so I see the original plan being for Menshikov to be treated generously, just completely removed from power. Hence, Menshikov from the get-go is permitted to retire to Ukraine.

Word Count: 4188

 

[Archduke]

29: Don Carlos Arrives in Italy

Tommaso Russo elected as Pope Clement XII in 1731​

On March 1, 1730, Rear Admiral Charles Stewart led a British fleet of more than 30 warships into Seville [1]. The presence of these ships in the waters of the Guadalquivir was not meant as an act of war nor of compellence. Instead, for the first time since the Bourbons had inherited the throne of Spain, the British arrived as friends and allies of the Spanish Bourbon dynasty. Unlike Spain's Bourbon cousins in France, Perfidious Albion had chosen to follow through on the promises and obligations it had signed into force with the Treaty of Madrid. Whereas France did not move a single soldier nor ship to aid Spain, Britain had prepared a full war fleet and was in the process of outfitting an army too, all just to support Spain and enforce the Treaty of Madrid's terms. This unusual development was celebrated throughout Spain and thousands flocked to towns on the Guadalquivir and to Seville itself to welcome the British sailors to Spain. Fruits, wine, and cheese were offered up to the British who had descended from the Downs just to defend Spain's honor. The spectacle was a display of the strength of the Anglo-Spanish alliance that had been formed just one year prior.

The evidence of Britain and Spain's friendship grew further when King Felipe V and Queen Isabel invited Rear Admiral Stewart and his officers to their palace in Seville to dine with them and all the greatest grandees of Spain [2]. Many of Stewart's officers had not even had the honor of dining with their own king, so to them, this reception was a remarkable and unforgettable experience. Among the guests at this dinner were Don Carlos, the promised prince of Parma for whom the British were instructed to fight in the name of, and Jose Patino, the leader of Spain's government and the man responsible for rebuilding Spain's navy from the tragedy of Cape Passaro. Patino remarked favorably on the British and their behavior but was even more impressed by their ships sitting down below in the port of Seville. Although Patino had impressively completely rebuilt Spain's navy in just a decade, he was still overwhelmed by just how superior the British ships were to his own [3]. The excellence of the British ships made Patino question just how the Russians had been able to manage to withstand the British at Osel and whip them at Kymmenedalen. Either the British were sorely lacking in good heirs to Viscount Torrington or the Russians must be something else. The most notable of absences from the event was the Prince of Asturias, Fernando, and his wife, Barbara of Portugal [4]. Fernando and Barbara had declined to come to Seville because of Fernando's stance against Spain's edging toward war with the Hapsburgs. In Fernando's opinion, Spain needed to focus on fixing its problems at home before it could turn its attention back to Europe, especially if turning that attention meant fighting for someone else's gain and not Spain's own gain. That same opinion is also why he would have found no welcome party in Seville, from his stepmother and even from his father.

Following the ceremony and pageantry at Seville, Stewart and his fleet turned about and sailed out of the Guadalquivir and into the Atlantic. From there, Stewart and the Royal Navy were to sail to Barcelona where Spain's army was gathering for the oncoming war against the Hapsburgs. As Stewart sailed to Barcelona, he sailed past the Rock of Gibraltar. Once Britain's outpost at the tip of Spain, the Rock now flew the red and yellow of Spain instead of the red, blue, and white of Britain. In a mark of the times, when the British sailed by they did not stop to resupply and instead traded salutes with Spanish guns. Stewart remarked to his officers that the loss of Gibraltar was regrettable. From a military perspective, Gibraltar was a defensible waypoint that Britain could use to send supplies to Port Mahon. At the same time, Gibraltar acted as a chokepoint where the British fleet could safely gather if it wanted to close the gateway between the Mediterranean and Atlantic to any one nation. However, along military lines, the loss of Gibraltar was not completely devastating. Although Gibraltar was a good base, it did have problems with fresh water and with the land access to Spain. Port Mahon was a much greater base with greater anchorage, local and native supplies, and separated by tens of miles of water from mainland Spain. Still, losing Gibraltar was a hard hit to the pride of Britain and its Royal Navy and seeing it fly foreign colors was tough for Stewart and his men to swallow.

At the same time that the British sailed to Barcelona, Don Carlos rode there. The Infante that Spain had designated as Parma's heir could barely have been better suited for his role. Even though Don Carlos was born in Spain and had lived all his life his Spain, he seemed far more like an Italian than a Spaniard. Besides Spanish, Carlos had learned Italian, Latin, German, and French so that he might converse fluently with his Italian subjects, Papal legates, Imperial overlords, and Bourbon family. Carlos' education like that of many Italians in the age had contained only a surface-level covering of military and naval matters. And, of course, like any good Italian, Carlos was a good Catholic who had been tutored by priests and Jesuits. Don Carlos even looked the part of an Italian, he was not tall like a Scandinavian nor burly like a Russian or broad-shouldered like a German. Instead, Don Carlos was short and slim with a prediction to slouch. Carlos was made to look even more Italian by his large, Roman nose and his tan skin. However, a life outside of Italy and its hedonistic proclivities had made Carlos into a man less willing to partake in those activities. Instead of gambling and women, Carlos took hunting, fishing, billiards, and carpentry as his hobbies. And above all, Carlos had a reverence to God that was deeper and more authentic than that held by most Italians. Most important of all of Carlos' traits, however, was his eternal reverence to his parents more akin to the filial piety of the east than the respect one paid to their parents in the west [5].

Ultimately, by the time that Stewart and Don Carlos both reached Barcelona, the war that had seemed so imminent at Seville was evaporating quickly before their eyes. The arrival of Stewart's fleet and the news of Britain's army mobilization had been enough to shake the resolve of the Hapsburgs and reopen the negotiations for peace. Although Isabel tried to stop this peace and ignite a conflict so that Don Carlos could conquer Naples and Sicily, Walpole's earnest desire for peace won out. Isabel's efforts to engineer a different peace that involved Don Carlos marrying Maria Theresa and gaining Naples and Sicily as her dowry also failed. Instead, the peace that Walpole's agent, James Waldegrave, designed was the one that Britain, the Hapsburgs, and Spain all ended up consenting to. While the final terms of that treaty were being hammered out and the ratifications were being deliberated, Patino chose against wasting any additional money on a war that seemed more unlikely to happen with each passing day. Accordingly, Patino ordered the bulk of the Spanish army at Barcelona to be dispersed and recalled the Count de Montemar [6]. All that Patino left standing was the 12,000 men that Spain was obliged to raise by the Treaty of Madrid. Under Patino's direction and with the approval of Walpole, those 12,000 men and Don Carlos were transported to Spanish-held Sardinia.

When the Spanish army arrived on Sardinia, its Manuel d'Orléans, count of Charny, put it to work instilling order on the island, which was still growing used to the return of Spanish rule. Although the Spaniards had a number of supporters among the natives there were also many Austracists or supporters of the Hapsburgs on the island. During Spain's previous invasion, these pro-Hapsburg forces had not strongly resisted the Spaniards due to the Spanish-Hapsburg alliance. However, with that alliance broken the Austracistas had become a nuisance that needed to be handled firmly to ensure the stability of Spanish rule over Sardinia [7]. The process of pacifying the Austracistas involved the movement of hundreds of Spanish soldiers toward the northern end of Sardinia. This movement alarmed the British who were worried that Spain meant to use the left-over parts of its army to invade Corsica and support the rebellion against Genoa. Even though the British had no strong feelings of animosity toward the rebels nor sympathy toward Genoa, Walpole was strongly against the idea of the Spanish gaining Corsica [8]. A Spanish Corsica paired with a Spanish Sardinia would give the Spaniards far too much power over the waters surrounding Menorca. For this reason, the British Admiralty ordered Stewart to prevent any major Spanish crossing into Corsica despite the Anglo-Spanish alliance. In the end, the Spanish never made an effort to support the Corsicans. Whether this was due to British pressure or a lack of Spanish interest is uncertain [9].

After weeks of waiting on Sardinia, the Anglo-Spanish force finally received the news that the Treaty of Vienna of 1730 had received all the necessary ratifications and with that news came the authorizations from Walpole's government and Felipe V for Don Carlos to land in Italy. In July 1730, Don Carlos landed at Livorno with 6,000 Spanish soldiers. Within Don Carlos' retinue were Manuel de Benavides y Aragón, Count de San Esteban, former tutor of Don Carlos, chief steward of Don Carlos' household, and Felipe V's official agent in Italy; Bartolomeo Corsini, nephew of the Florentine Cardinal Lorenzo Corsini and chief equerry for Don Carlos; Giovanni Andrea Mariano Doria, Duke of Tursi and grand chamberlain; José Joaquín, Marquis de Montealegre and secretary for despatches; José Fernández-Miranda Ponce de León, first gentleman-in-waiting and officer for Don Carlos' military; Giovanni Fogliani Sforza d'Aragona, a gentleman of the chamber; and finally, Don Lelio Carafa, brother of Duke Marzio Domenico IV Carafa of Maddaloni and captain of Don Carlos' bodyguard. Together this group of handpicked Spaniards and Italians was supposed to form the nucleus of Don Carlos' Italian household and government [10].

From Livorno, Don Carlos and his retinue traveled to Florence, the capital of the Grand Duchy of Tuscany, an Italian demense that the Treaty of Madrid and Treaty of Vienna of 1730 had also designated him as the heir of. In the meantime, the Count of Charny led the Spanish army to Parma to install the garrison. At Florence, Carlos was greeted by a salute of cannons and thousands of Tuscans lining the streets and cheering him on. As Carlos rode through the streets of Florence, Te Deum was sung by eight choirs consisting of 300 musicians and the salutes continued to blast in the background [11]. Finally, Carlos reached the Medici royal residence, the Pitti Palace, where quarters had been prepared for him. At the palace, Carlos was welcomed by the Spanish minister to Tuscany, Father Ascanio, and the British diplomats, Francis Colman and Brinley Skinner [12]. They congratulated him on his succession to Parma and then gave him the necessary advice before he met with the Grand Duke of Tuscany, Gian Gastone, and separately with Electress Anna Maria, the Grand Duke's sister. Don Carlos was supposed to be the heirs to these two final scions of the House of Medici and the diplomats wanted to ensure that no mishap occurred during Don Carlos' first encounter with each of them .

When Don Carlos met Gian Gastone, he found the Grand Duke to be an ill-fit, obese, mess of a man whose appearance was not at all hidden by his extravagant clothing and massive wig. The Grand Duke did not even rise from his bed to welcome Carlos into his quarters and his realm. Despite the oddities of Gian Gastone, Don Carlos treated him with every possible sign of respect and did not skip a single formality [13]. The Grand Duke took a quick liking to the boy even if his presence was a sad reminder of the failure of all three of Cosimo III's children to produce a single offspring. Out of a desire to keep Tuscany out of Hapsburg hands and due to the confidence that this Spanish-born but Italian-bred prince inspired, Gian Gastone signed a last will and testament that designated Don Carlos as the heir to the House of Medici and the Grand Duchy of Tuscany. Gian Gastone also showered Carlos with gifts and began to speak to him as if he was Gian Gastone's son [14].

For the following three days and nights, the whole of Florence was the site of a jubilant celebration. During the days, the Tuscan military paraded and bands and orchestras played, all in the squares of Tuscany. Don Carlos was drafted into these parades, even if these gatherings seemed to be too much for the Spanish infante who had been used to the rigidity of the Spanish court and not this spontaneous and free-spirited partying that the Italians were fond of. Still a boy, Carlos did his best to sneak away and hunt in the local countryside. During the evening, Carlos was invited to observe the opera at Pergola Theatre. Carlos had little interest in music but he still quietly endured at least an act of the opera before he retreated to Pitti Palace. However, even in the palace, Carlos did not find peace. Outside, Carlos could see the whole of Florence lit up by lights hanging in the streets and fireworks shot off from the Palazzo Vecchio while the citizens loudly danced, drank, and celebrated. Within the palace, Gian Gastone's debauchery left Carlos with few places to find peace and quiet.

Kept up at night and wanting something to do, Carlos took up using his bow and arrow against the tapestries in his room and shot at the animals within those tapestries. Carlos' years of hunting in Spain had given him plenty of experience and within a few days, he was able to shoot at the eyes of the birds on these tapestries. The ruining of this valuable artwork upset Gian Gastone when he paused his own debauchery enough to inquire after Carlos' activities. Gian Gastone ended up having the tapestries removed from Carlos' room when the Hereditary Prince of Tuscany went out to hunt real animals. Although Carlos was disappointed to see his home entertainment taken away, he could not argue with Gian Gastone who told him that the warm weather made such tapestries unnecessary and even unhealthy to have in the room. News of the incident did confuse the Tuscans who wondered why Carlos needed such entertainment at all when Florence offered more than enough parties to entertain the prince. However, their confusion did not turn into resentment as Carlos' inherent geniality and generosity led to the incident quickly being forgotten [15].

Gian Gastone more than made up for taking away Carlos' tapestries when he presented Carlos to the Tuscan Senate. Under Gian Gastone's recommendation, the Tuscan Senate approved of Carlos as the heir to the Grand Duchy of Tuscany and officially named him the Hereditary Prince of Tuscany. Afterward, the nobles and senators of Tuscany had their banners carried and dipped before Carlos a symbol of their homage to the next Grand Duke of Tuscany. This ceremony allowed the Tuscans to engage in even more celebrations. It had been rare for the Tuscans to have this many days of celebration and pageantry due to Cosimo III's distaste for it and Gian Gastone's content with keeping his parties limited to Pitti Palace. The Hapsburgs were less satisfied by the chain of events. Even though the Hapsburgs had agreed to Carlos' succession to Tuscany, they had still wanted it to go through them rather than the Tuscan Senate. In the eyes of Hapsburgs, the Tuscan Senate should have nominated Carlos as the heir and then presented him to them for their own approval. Only once Carlos had been approved and invested by the Hapsburgs should he have been given the title of Hereditary Prince. However, with the Count of Charny's army still entrenched in Parma and the Tuscans, not at all friendly to the interests of the Hapsburgs, no military action resulted from the perceived sleight. The Hapsburgs issued their protest but nothing more came out of it, not even when the Tuscan Senate failed to retract its entitlement of Don Carlos [16].

After spending nearly half a year in Tuscany, Don Carlos traveled to the Duchy of Parma and Piacenza where he was once again greeted by celebrations. Don Carlos had already grown tired of the celebrations but tolerated them as he had tolerated the Tuscan ones and the Spanish ones before he left. These celebrations included yet another trip to the theatre. Carlos was taken to the Teatro Farnese to listen to "The Arrival of Ascanius in Italy", which featured sixteen horsemen singing verses written by Frugoni. Later, Carlos' grandmother, Dorothea Sophie of the Palatinate, presented him with a medal that was embossed with a lady with a lily in her hand and had Spes publica engraved on it. The medal was meant to commemorate Carlos' succession. Finally, under the instructions of Isabel Farnese, a banner bearing the words Parma Resurget was unfurled at the front of the Palazzo Farnese. These words added to the Hapsburg consternation about a Spanish prince and a son of Isabel Farnese in Parma just miles away from Hapsburg-held Milan, but again the Hapsburgs were warded off from military action by the Count of Charny. As the peace held, Don Carlos and his Spanish army were able to celebrate Christmas in Parma. In the following spring, Carlos continued his education under the tutelage of a variety of Italian tutors while Dorothea Sophie focused on governing the duchy for her grandson [17].

Another major event in Italy during the March of 1731 was the death of Pope Benedict XIII [18]. Following his death, the work to elect a new pope began almost immediately, even though the real conclave was weeks away as cardinals from other countries still needed to arrive. Indeed, Antonio Rambaldo, Count of Collalto and Hapsburg minister to the Papacy, and Cardinal Juan Álvaro Cienfuegos Villazón, a representative of Hapsburg interests, called for an official stay of the first vote until the rest of the Imperial cardinals could arrive. Ahead of the conclave five factions emerged, the French faction, representing France and its interests and led by Cardinal Pietro Ottoboni; the Clementines, made up of cardinals raised by Clement XI and chief among them Annibale Albani; the Imperial faction, which supported Hapsburg interests and was led by Cardinal Cienfuegos; the Savoyard faction, representing Savoy's interests and led by Annibale's brother, Alessandro Albani; and finally the Zelanti, or non-secular party. The Spaniards did not have a party due to the split among the pro-Spanish cardinals, Cornelio Bentivoglio and Luis Antonio de Belluga and Moncada [19].

The first vote in May, more than ten candidates received votes with Cardinal Giuseppe Renato Imperiali, a favorite of the Imperials, receiving the most. However, once Imperali was one vote away from election, Bentivoglio issued Spain's veto against him. However, this veto was more than ten years old and was signed by Spain's secretary of state rather than the king as required. Since Belluga refused to back up Bentivoglio on this veto, the conclave had to wait until Isidro Casado de Acevedo, Marquis de Monteleone, could arrive with an updated veto signed by Felipe V. The reason for Spain's veto had less to do with Imperiali being an Imperial candidate and more to do with him having tried to arrest Cardinal Alberoni, former prime minister of Spain [20]. Once Imperiali's candidature was verified as dead, Cardinal Ottoboni, Cardinal Bentivoglio, and the Savoyard faction came together to propose their own candidate Tommaso Ruffo. However, dissension within the French faction and resistance from the Clementines meant that Ruffo did not get the necessary votes. When it became obvious that Ruffo did not have the necessary support, the conclave moved with the French and Clementines rallying around one of their own, Lorenzo Corsini. Backed by Medici money, Corsini looked like a strong candidate and he even got the approval of Bentivoglio and the Zelanti but the vote came Cardinal Cienfuegos vetoed Corsini's candidacy because the Hapsburgs were worried about Lorenzo's nephew and his place in Don Carlos' household [21].

With the first three major candidates all cut down, more popped up. Annibale Albani tried to push the candidacy of Pico della Mirandola, but it went nowhere. Next, the Imperial faction finally settled on a new candidate, Gianantonio Davia. However, Davia could not break through the threshold for votes, and instead, Cardinal Pietro Corradini emerged as a candidate for the French and Clementines. Even though Corradini received more votes than Davia, he also could not break through the threshold. To further discourage his election, Bentivoglio threatened to get Spain's veto. However, Alberoni, Belluga, and the Spanish representative, the Marquis of Monteleone, all cast doubt on that potential for a veto. Instead, Corradini's candidature was ended by the threat of an Imperial veto. Following Corradini's failure, Antonio Banchieri was proposed by everyone but the French rejected him. Two other candidates, Cardinal Fabio Olivieri, a candidate for the Spanish, and Antonio Felice Zondadari, a candidate for the French, successively failed. Olivieri could not overcome the resistance of the Imperial faction and Zondadari was vetoed by Bentivoglio and Belluga who recalled Zondadari's conflict with Felipe V. By this point, weeks had passed without a Pope elected and so the Clementines went back to suggesting Corsini, but Cienfuegos informed that the Hapsburgs had no intention of lifting their veto.

After five-long months, no pope had been elected and the seat of Saint Peter remained empty. Deadlock reined as the successive ballots continued to fail to produce a winning candidate. Worse yet, the major courts of Europe refused to back down on their vetoes and when Olivieri finally began to gain some momentum, the Imperials squashed it with a veto [22]. With all these vetoes holding, there were some more attempts at electing a non-offensive candidate like Banchieri or Mirandola, but they could not find any momentum. Instead, through attrition and round after round of bartering, the decision came down to either Ruffo or Corradini. Ultimately, the Spanish and Imperial resistance to Corradini remained while the French opposition to Ruffo softened [23]. As a consequence, Tommaso Ruffo was elected as the next pope and took Clement XII for his name, in honor of the pope who had raised him to his position as cardinal.

[1] In OTL, when Admiral Wager's fleet visited Spain, it went to Seville. There are no conceivable military reasons, so I assume that political reasons motivated this visit. In TTL, Stewart's visit Seville for the political reasons of proving to Spain that Britain is a good ally with a good navy. This is display is made even more important by the British naval defeats during Empress Catherine's War.
[2] In OTL, Wager was invited to dine with Felipe V and Isabel. In TTL, Felipe V decides to show the same hospitality.
[3] In OTL, Patino was amazed by the British navy when it visited. In TTL, despite the recent British naval victories, Patino is still amazed, which creates a question of how Britain could have lost.
[4] There is no record I can find of Fernando and Barbara attending this dinner but there is explicit mention of Don Carlos being there. I believe that Fernando and Barbara were probably not at the dinner since they stayed in Madrid when the court moved south and there is no record of them making a visit to Seville. In OTL, the cracks between Felipe V and Fernando showed as soon as Fernando got married and began to express his opinions. In TTL, the cracks have also begun to show.
[5] This description of Don Carlos is based on Harold Acton's description of him.
[6] Patino was fairly practical and money-conscious. If war is not on the horizon, I see him dispersing the army sooner rather than later.
[7] The Austracists remained a powerful faction on Sardinia after the Hapsburgs gave up the island in the War of the Quadruple Alliance.
[8] I cannot see Walpole favoring a Spanish presence in Corsica.
[9] In OTL, few powers actively supported the Corsican rebellion during its early years. Indeed, several of them professed they would not intervene. Spain was friendly with the rebellion but never acted on that friendliness to provide material support to the rebellion. In TTL, Spain has other interests right now, so it will also avoid supporting the rebellion for now.
[10] This is Don Carlos' OTL retinue. I see no reason to change it.
[11] In OTL, Don Carlos was greeted by intense celebration due to him representing the continued independence of Tuscany from the Hapsburgs. That sentiment is the same TTL.
[12] Only Skinner is recorded as meeting Don Carlos in OTL, but the British resident in 1731 and also 1730 is Colman. I assume that Skinner is remembered due to his peculiar appearance. In TTL, I make sure to mention that both British diplomats meet Don Carlos.
[13] By this point, in OTL, Gian Gastone was pretty much bed-ridden but Don Carlos still treated him respectfully.
[14] Gian Gastone approved of Don Carlos' succession in OTL because he liked Don Carlos and appreciated the Spanish guarantee of Tuscan independence from the Hapsburgs. In TTL, those reasons remain.
[15] These episodes are the same as OTL.
[16] In OTL, Gian Gastone had Don Carlos named as the official heir of Tuscany fairly early on despite the expectation of Hapsburg opposition. In TTL, the Treaty of Vienna even more strongly supports the Bourbon succession to Tuscany so Gian Gastone will feel even more confident having Don Carlos recognized as heir. In OTL, the Hapsburgs issued a protest because they wanted it to go through them and TTL they still want the succession to flow through them as a means of shoring up Imperial authority so they will still be upset.
[17] This is also the same as OTL. Parma celebrated Don Carlos like Tuscany and Isabel Farnese engaged in a number of acts that the Hapsburgs found unsatisfactory because she felt strong.
[18] Benedict XIII died in OTL in 1730 during an epidemic in Rome. In TTL, with all the movement of soldiers and armies during the late 1720s, that epidemic does not strike in 1730 and instead Benedict XIII dies of old age in 1731.
[19] These factions are the same as OTL because influence in the church was not really affected by Empress Catherine's War. Also as far as I am aware, the Spanish split was due to personal differences, which will not be impacted by the war.
[20] In OTL, Imperali was vetoed for this reason and I think this reason will still exist in TTL.
[21] In OTL, Corsini's early candidacy was rejected because the Tuscan succession was unsettled. In TTL, it is settled already and settled in Don Carlos' favor. Also, in OTL Corsini's nephew had not joined Don Carlos' retinue by the time of the election. In TTL, the nephew has joined Don Carlos. As a consequence in TTL, Corsini looks like much more of a potentially pro-Spanish candidate, so the Hapsburgs veto him. As a consequence, the OTL Clement XII is blocked from becoming Pope.
[22] Olivieri was regarded as very pro-Bourbon in 1724 and publically denounced by the Imperial ambassador, so I cannot see the Imperials tolerating him in 1731 in TTL.
[23] Corradini was the more controversial of the two candidates so I think Russo is more likely to be elected based on being the less disliked candidate.

Word Count: 4669

 

[Archduke]

30: The Prussian Bachelorette

Princess Friederike Sophie Wilhelmine of Prussia​

In December of 1730, Wilhelm of Hesse-Kassel and Friedrich II of Saxe-Gotha-Altenburg completed their mediation of the Clamei Crisis and released their ruling, which both George II's Brunswick-Luneburg and Friedrich Wilhelm's Prussia were expected to follow. By this ruling, Brunswick-Luneburg would have to pay an almost negligible sum to compensate for the theft of hay from Clamei and "other damages". In the future, the hay of Clamei was to be split evenly between villagers from both sides of the border, but the disputed nature of Clamei itself went unresolved. Regarding diplomatic matters, it was decided that George II and future Electors of Brunswick-Luneburg were under no obligation to inform the court of Potsdam of their arrival in Germany, but the King in Prussia also had no obligation to provide post-horses to the Elector of Brunswick-Luneburg if he should need to pass through Hohenzollern territories to reach his own Hanoverian territories [1]. Overall, the mediation did little to address the main flashpoint of the crisis which was Prussian recruiting and Brunswick-Luneburger retaliation, but the mediation did just enough to cool the tensions between George II and Friedrich Wilhelm so that war could be avoided.

With peace at hand for Prussia, Friedrich Wilhelm turned his mind back to domestic affairs. Specifically, Friedrich Wilhelm looked to marry off his eldest daughter Wilhelmine who had become an almost unbearable presence in Friedrich Wilhelm's household. Her behavior, her support for her effeminate brother, her scheming with her mother, everything about her annoyed Friedrich Wilhelm to no end and he just wanted to be rid of her one way or another [2]. For this reason, Friedrich Wilhelm presented two choices for Wilhelmine's husband, Margrave Friedrich Wilhelm of Brandenburg-Schwedt or Prince Johann Adolf of Saxe-Weissenfels [3]. Neither of these choices was remotely acceptable to Sophia Dorothea. The first match was a minor secondary prince within Prussia who would never be anything more than a vassal of Prussia. The second was a landless officer in the Saxon army bound to inherit the considerable Duchy of Saxe-Weissenfels and its even more considerable debt. Not to mention that the Prince was a 45-year-old widower. In comparison to the marriage that Sophia Dorothea had planned for Wilhelmine since her birth, a marriage to the future King of Great Britain and Ireland, these proposed husbands were beyond disappointing. For that reason, Sophia Dorothea declined to accept either match for her daughter and instead brought back the idea of marrying Wilhelmine and Prince Frederick of Brunswick-Luneburg [4].

Friedrich Wilhelm was not sure how to respond to Sophia Dorothea's counterproposal. Friedrich Wilhelm and George I had been on the verge of completing a double marriage between the heirs of Prussia and Great Britain and two Princesses of each nation to seal the Anglo-Prussian alliance where George I had dropped dead in Brunswick-Luneburg. Since then Friedrich Wilhelm had been given little opportunity to explore the project again due to the Empress Catherine's War, the Parmese Crisis, and the Clamei Crisis, all of found Prussia aligned against Britain and Brunswick-Luneburg. Friedrich Wilhelm had entertained the idea of marrying Wilhelmine and Prince Frederick during the one moment of genuine peace that Prussia and Britain had, but in the end, no marriage came out of it. George II refused to use Prince Frederick's personal negotiations as a launching point for serious marriage talks and instead embarrassed Friedrich Wilhelm by calling out his subversion of George II's familial affairs. The experience had left a bad taste in Friedrich Wilhelm's mouth and made him uneasy about resuming talks with George II over any marriages [5]. Furthermore, after the most recent confrontation with George II over Clamei there remained no love between the brothers-in-law. They despised each other almost as much they despised their sons.

On the other hand, Friedrich Wilhelm recognized the advantages of a marriage between Wilhelmine and Prince Frederick. First, through that marriage, Friedrich Wilhelm would be well rid of Wilhelmine who would be hundreds of miles away from him. She might still scheme in her letters home but at the least Friedrich Wilhelm would not have to set eyes on her ugly and rude face. Second, the marriage gave Friedrich Wilhelm some leverage in his relations with the Holy Roman Emperor. Although Friedrich Wilhelm had a sense of loyalty to the Emperor that loyalty was weighed against Friedrich Wilhelm's own desire to empower Prussia and live a pious and just life. Friedrich Wilhelm considered Julich and Berg to be his by right and the Emperor had agreed with Friedrich Wilhelm. However, the Emperor had done nothing to prove his support for Friedrich Wilhelm's claims. There was no Imperial edict nor ruling from the Aulic Court. There was nothing out in the open to bind Charles VI to support Friedrich Wilhelm's claims to Julich and Berg and that concerned him. If Friedrich Wilhelm could marry one of his daughters to Britain's heir and gain Britain's backing for his claims then it would put pressure on the Emperor to finally come through [6]. The third reason for supporting the marriage was that it would force the Hanoverian dynasty to acknowledge the equality of the Hohenzollern dynasty. Too many times in the past had the British slighted Friedrich Wilhelm over their perceived superiority to his kingdom.

Due to these conflicting feelings, Friedrich Wilhelm did not reject Sophia Dorothea's proposal straight away but he also refused to initiate resumed talks himself. Friedrich Wilhelm was tired of Britain's insults, if they wanted one of his daughters then they needed to come to him. In the meantime, Friedrich Wilhelm continued to explore the two options he had presented to Sophia Dorothea so that he could prove the worth of each match. For this reason, Friedrich Wilhelm visited the Margrave of Schwedt's mother, Johanna Charlotte von Anhalt-Dessau, to discuss the marriage. Before Friedrich Wilhelm could arrive at her estate at Schwedt, Sophia Dorothea informed Johanna Charlotte of both her and Wilhelmine's adamant opposition to the match. Thus, when Friedrich Wilhelm brought up the marriage to Johanna Charlotte, she accused on account of Sophia Dorothea and Wilhelmine's resistance. Johanna Charlotte told Friedrich Wilhelm that she would not wed her son to an unwilling wife. This answer upset Friedrich Wilhelm because it suggested the interference of his wife. In reality, Joanna Charlotte was just using Sophia Dorothea as an excuse for her real reasons for rejecting the match. Those reasons were that Friedrich Wilhelm was offering a ridiculously small dowry of 30,000 crowns for his eldest daughter, that Joanna Charlotte expected her son to become an even more restrained vassal of Prussia if he was married to its eldest princess, and finally that she worried what would happen to her son after Friedrich Wilhelm died. Everyone understood that Wilhelmine and Prince Fritz were tightly knit and to pain one was to pain the other [7].

Rejected by the mother, Friedrich Wilhelm turned to the uncle of the Margrave of Schwedt, Prince Leopold of Anhalt-Dessau. The Prince had been an integral part of Friedrich Wilhelm's army for years and was a close friend of his, so Friedrich Wilhelm expected that the Prince would be grateful that his nephew was marrying such a prestigious bride. However, Prince Leopold shared the same viewpoints as Joanna Charlotte. Furthermore, Prince Leopold had received letters directly from Prince Fritz that promised the prince incredible rewards to both him and his family, so long as he avoided the marriage of Wilhelmine and the Margrave [8]. For this reason, when Friedrich Wilhelm approached him Prince Leopold gently but sternly refused to endorse the match. This response displeased Friedrich Wilhelm but he respected Prince Leopold too much to take out his emotions on him.

The mood of Friedrich Wilhelm soon improved when the Prince of Saxe-Weissenfels wrote that he had no qualms about marrying Wilhelmine. Indeed, despite the meager dowry, Prince Johann Adolf was ready and excited to marry Wilhelmine. On that note, Friedrich Wilhelm invited Johann Adolf to Potsdam to see Wilhelmine in person and sign the engagement papers before he could change his mind. When Johann Adolf did come in March 1731, Queen Sophia Dorothea refused to treat him with the respect being his rank and renown. She did not even speak to the man nor did she allow Wilhelmine to speak to him. Only Friedrich Wilhelm's desire to be courteous and respectful in front of his daughter's future husband prevented him from attacking Sophia Dorothea at that moment. However, the red in Friedrich Wilhelm's face and heavy breathing did little to hide his anger. Friedrich Wilhelm's frustration ultimately forced the King in Prussia to leave Johann Adolf's side for some time as he attempted to cool off and regain his composure [9].

In the absence of the King, one of Sophia Dorothea's allies at court, Count Albrecht Konrad Finck von Finckenstein approached Johann Adolf and made clear to him that Sophia Dorothea would never approve Wilhelmine's marriage to him and would do everything in her power to stop it. If Johann Adolf continued to pursue this marriage then he would just cause more conflict within the Hohenzollern family and that he would not make Wilhelmine a happy woman. However, if Johann Adolf should abandon marriage then Sophia Dorothea would reward him greatly. Count Finck also pointed out that Prince Frederick of Brunswick-Luneburg was seeking a match with Wilhelmine, so if he stole Wilhelmine away from him then he would be insulting the future King of Great Britain and Ireland. Johann Adolf took heed of Count Finck's meaning and told him to tell the Queen that he would abandon the match and that he would tell the King just as much. Once the king rejoined him, Johann Adolf did as he promised. Johann Adolf told Friedrich Wilhelm that since both Wilhelmine and her mother were opposed to the match that he could accept it. However, Johann Adolf added that if the plans for Wilhelmine and Prince Frederick's marriage fell through and no other proposals between Wilhelmine and other kings or their heirs arise that he would willingly accept a marriage to her [10]. This sudden change of heart by Johann Adolf took Friedrich Wilhelm by surprise and left him on the verge of an outburst. Through discipline and willpower, Friedrich Wilhelm avoided an incident and said he understood Johann Adolf's predicament before once again leaving Johann Adolf's side.

This time Friedrich Wilhelm went to Sophia Dorothea and kindly and respectfully asked that she give her approval to Johann Adolf. Friedrich Wilhelm discussed the merits of the match and of the man who was a fine soldier and an heir, but Sophia Dorothea did not budge. Once Sophia Dorothea's obstinance became clear to Friedrich Wilhelm his mood became angry and vicious. He told that if she wanted Wilhelmine to marry Prince Frederick then she could, but Sophia Dorothea would have to write to them and get the Hanoverians to ask for Wilhelmine's hand themselves. He was not going to beg or barter for this marriage, he had seen his fill of Hanoverian nonsense already. Yet if the Hanoverians did not reply in a positive manner, if they delayed or equivocated, if they made demands of Friedrich Wilhelm, then that would be the end of it. The marriage would happen or it would not. Friedrich Wilhelm wanted certainty and immediacy and would take nothing less. To this Sophia Dorothea, promised that she would secure the Hanoverians' approval for the match. However, Friedrich Wilhelm was not done yet. He went on to say that he would not consent to any match for Fritz and none of those proud and haughty Hanoverian princesses. He was not going to bring another Hanoverian into his household as Sophia Dorothea had shown just how disagreeable and mischievous they can be. Fritz would be tamed and subjugated long before he could ever be married [11].

Immediately, Sophia Dorothea got to work crafting a letter to her brother and her sister-in-law to beg that they restart talks for Wilhelmine and Prince Frederick's marriage. However, Sophia Dorothea knew for a fact that George II was more concerned about marrying off his daughters than his son and wanted to marry one of them to Fritz, which Friedrich Wilhelm had specifically said he would never agree to. Faced with this contrast between Hanoverian and Hohenzollern desires, Sophia Dorothea felt that a double marriage was impossible and she could not have the Hanoverians tie Wilhelmine and Fritz's fates together. When Sophia Dorothea presented this predicament to Fritz and Wilhelmine they both cast their doubts on the scheme, which shocked and horrified the Queen. Wilhelmine was so doubtful about the match succeeding that she went so far as to suggest that the Prince of Saxe-Weissenfels was not a terrible prospect. This suggestion absolutely terrified Sophia Dorothea and she threatened to kill herself and Wilhelmine before ever allowing that marriage and stormed out of the room. Once again, Count Finck came to the rescue by reassuring Wilhelmine and calming down Sophia Dorothea. Together, the group came up with the plan of Fritz writing to his aunt that he would promise to marry one of their daughters and no one else but only if they consented to Wilhelmine and Prince Frederick's marriage [12]. Additionally, Fritz and Wilhelmine were to write to Prince Frederick to get him involved in this effort. Perhaps Prince Frederick could similarly promise that he would only marry Wilhelmine and no one else.

Griff wrote back to Fritz and Wilhelmine within a week. He was dismayed by their misfortune and promised to his utmost to achieve the approval of a double marriage. Griff's parents were less quick with their response. Only after a month did Queen Caroline write back to Sophia Dorothea and the answer that her letter carried was less than favorable. Although Caroline pressed Sophia Dorothea to resist an unwanted and unequal marriage and stated her own earnest desire for a double match between their children, Caroline offered nothing more. No formal proposal for either marriage was included in her proposal. Instead, Caroline claimed that George II could not make any moves on the marriage without first discussing the matter with Parliament [13]. This claim was, of course, a lie. Had George II presented Parliament with either marriage then they would have ecstatically celebrated the end of Anglo-Prussian hostility and the end of the Prussian threat to Brunswick-Luneburg. So no, domestic politics were not in the way of a marriage. Personal sentiments are better explanations. Even though logically Britain and Brunswick-Luneburg would greatly benefit from Prussia's friendship, George II was still hot over the Clamei Crisis and was uneager to offer up his heir to a Prussian princess. George II disdained Prussia and Friedrich Wilhelm too much for that. George II also had too little love for his son to want to fulfill his stated desire of marrying Wilhelmine. Besides these personal sentiments, there was also an element of greed in George II's reluctance to propose either marriage. Firstly, George II had major expenses, which he justified through the size of his family. Losing one of his family members through marriage jeopardized the unpopular monarch's incredibly bloated Civil List. Secondly, within that Civil List, George II had taken every single penny of his son, Prince Frederick's, allotted 100,000 pounds and used it on himself. If Griff was married and thus began to establish a household of his own then George II would be obliged or even forced to part with some of all of those stolen funds. Neither situation suited the avaricious King of Great Britain one bit.

Friedrich Wilhelm took no pride in Sophia Dorothea's defeat. On one hand, Caroline's response just proved all the unpleasant conceptions that Friedrich Wilhelm held about the Hanoverians, Britain, and their perceptions of an Anglo-Prussian alliance. If the Hanoverian dynasty was not willing to take the necessary steps to reconcile with Prussia and open the doors of friendship then Prussia would have to remain beholden to the Emperor and his generosity. The thought unsettled Friedrich Wilhelm because it made him feel helpless. On another hand, both the Margrave of Schwedt and the Prince of Saxe-Weissenfels, the two prospects that Friedrich Wilhelm had in mind for Wilhelmine's husband, had already refused to accept Wilhelmine's hand. Both of them feared the consequences of entering into a forced marriage with the beloved sister of the future King in Prussia and neither was willing to risk Fritz's wrath in future for Friedrich Wilhelm's gratitude in the present. Friedrich Wilhelm did not know what other husbands were out there for Wilhelmine. The children of the Elector of Saxony, King of Finland, Duke of Bremen-Verden, and the Prince of Hesse-Kassel were all too young, the Duke of Mecklenburg-Schwerin only had a daughter, and the heirs to Saxe-Merseburg and Saxe-Gotha-Altenburg were both already married. Friedrich Wilhelm was running out of places to settle Wilhelmine and he was not ready to send her to the Church. Due to these problems, Friedrich Wilhelm rather surprisingly told Sophia Dorothea to try again and press the Hanoverians harder this time [14]. He wanted an answer, a real one, whether it be yes or no.

Once again Sophia Dorothea wrote to Caroline asking after the result of George II's discussions with Parliament and beseeching Caroline to realize the benefits of marrying Prince Frederick and Wilhelmine. Meanwhile, Fritz doubled down on his promise to marry no but a Princess of Britain and offered the hand of any of them if doing so would secure Wilhelmine's marriage to Frederick. This time the Hanoverians took even longer to respond and went they did their answer was one that Sophia Dorothea knew Friedrich Wilhelm would have no patience for. Caroline stated that George II and the Parliament were willing to accept Wilhelmine as their daughter-in-law but required that Fritz and Princess Amelia be married at the same time [15]. As could be expected, Friedrich Wilhelm refused to accept that condition and reminded Sophia Dorothea that he had no intention of wedding Fritz off until Fritz could be disciplined into a real man. Since the Hanoverians had hesitated and now made demands of him, Friedrich Wilhelm stood firm on his previous threat and proclaimed that the Hanoverian match, any Hanoverian match was now unacceptable to him. Neither Wilhelmine nor Fritz nor any of his other children would receive Hanoverian spouses and any further discussion of that idea would be met with the strongest rebuke [16]. Friedrich Wilhelm would find another husband for Wilhelmine whoever it might be.

Even if Friedrich Wilhelm had determined that an Anglo-Prussian match was off the table, Sophia Dorothea was not so certain. No matter what she would not let her beloved Wilhelmine the victim of marriage to either the Margrave of Schwedt or the Prince of Saxe-Weissenfels [17]. Unfortunately for Sophia Dorothea, she was quickly running out of time to either design some means of accomplishing the Hanoverian marriage or conjuring up some alternative prince who suited both her tastes and expectations for her firstborn. Friedrich Wilhelm was eager to get rid of Wilhelmine and end all these shenanigans related to her marriage. He even went so far as to assert that by the year's end he would have Wilhelmine's future sorted out whether Sophia Dorothea approved of that future or not. The only item in Sophia Dorothea's favor was that Friedrich Wilhelm was about to travel to the Electorate of Saxony on a diplomatic visit. With him, he was taking much of Prussia's court including both Sophia Dorothea's favorite son, Fritz, and the malicious influence who condemned Sophia Dorothea daily, Friedrich Wilhelm von Grumbkow. While they were gone discussing European affairs and coordinating policies with the King of Poland, Sophia Dorothea would be left alone and unsupervised. This was Sophia Dorothea's opportunity to negotiate with the Hanoverians herself to save that match. Little did Sophia Dorothea know what misery was about to befall her and all her dreams.

[1] I do not have any details on the OTL mediation result but I assume that it was a non-result and mainly symbolic, which is the type of mediation result I tried to go for here.
[2] Friedrich Wilhelm grew to detest Wilhelmine, his once-favorite daughter, for reasons such as these in OTL. In TTL, the degree of hatred is slightly less than OTL because of the time Friedrich Wilhelm got to spend away from the family while at war, but the hatred is still present. Also, in TTL, I imagine that Friedrich Wilhelm hates Fritz even more than OTL. In TTL, Friedrich Wilhelm has seen Fritz act like the man he has conceptualized he should be through his heroics during the war. But after the war, Fritz still continues to enjoy music and clothing and other things that Friedrich Wilhelm finds disagreeable. So there is a sentiment of being conned, which in OTL Friedrich Wilhelm absolutely abhorred.
[3] These are the OTL husbands proposed by Friedrich Wilhelm. In OTL, Friedrich Wilhelm proposed Schwedt as a way to control Schwedt. This reason remains in TTL. In OTL, Friedrich Wilhelm proposed Saxe-Weissenfels because he personally respected him as a solider from my perspective. In TTL, that respect is even higher due to the two of them fighting in Empress Catherine's War together.
[4] In OTL, Friedrich Wilhelm's efforts to marry Wilhelmine stagnated after George I's death because that is when the double marriage idea began to die. Under George II's talks were slow to resume and only really got serious when Friedrich Wilhelm was on the verge of marrying Wilhelmine to someone else in early 1730. In TTL, George I's death and Empress Catherine's War ended the original double marriage talks and since then Anglo-Prussians relations have been so fraught that the marriage talks have yet to resume even though some persons like Frederick of Wales and Sophia Dorothea have never stopped wanting the double marriages.
[5] Friedrich Wilhelm's degree of frustration over the Hanoverian matches right here is not as high as it got in OTL, because in OTL Friedrich Wilhelm got jerked around by the British repeatedly over the course of three years. Friedrich Wilhelm is still frustrated but less so than OTL.
[6] Friedrich Wilhelm in OTL remained loyal to the Emperor out of necessity. He was very distrustful of the Emperor and often felt misused or cheated, but he never felt like he had a legitimate option to oppose the Emperor once the Russians allied with the Emperor. In OTL, he explored using the British as a counterweight and a bargaining chip against the Emperor. This is all the same TTL.
[7] These are the OTL reasons for Schwedt's reluctance to agree to the marriage and I believe they hold TTL.
[8] Similarly, these are the OTL reasons for the Dessauer's reluctance to agree to the marriage and I believe they hold TTL.
[9] In OTL, Sophia Dorothea was similarly rude. In TTL, the match is still just as bad in Sophia Dorothea's eyes despite Saxe-Weissenfels having some more military accolades.
[10] In OTL, Count von Finck did pull Saxe-Weissenfels aside to ward him off from agreeing to the marriage and Saxe-Weissenfels agreed. In TTL, I do not see Saxe-Weissenfels making a different decision.
[11] This is similar to Friedrich Wilhelm's OTL response to Sophia Dorothea's interference. Also, in OTL, Friedrich Wilhelm opposed Fritz's marriage to Amelia intermittently.
[12] This is the OTL chain of events that transpired after Friedrich Wilhelm consented to a reopening of the Anglo-British marriage idea. In Wilhelmine's memoirs she takes full credit for the idea of Fritz's promises, but I find that somewhat suspect and believe that an experience courtier like von Finck or her mother is the more likely originator of the scheme.
[13] In OTL, George II and Caroline hid behind a number of excuses to delay serious talks. I believe that this unwillingness to seriously negotiate is in part due to their inherent flaws in their personalities and also due to their reluctance to see Frederick of Wales being given a wife. Neither of these reasons are different in TTL.
[14] Again, Friedrich Wilhelm has been jerked around by the Hanoverians less than OTL so he is slightly more supportive of continued negotiation than OTL.
[15] One excuse that George II and Caroline hid behind was making demands they knew could not be met such as the immediate double marriage when it well known that Friedrich Wilhelm only wanted one.
[16] This is where Friedrich Wilhelm's patience runs out and he puts an end to the matter.
[17] Sophia Dorothea did not give up on the marriage to Frederick of Wales until the day that Wilhelmine was married.

Word Count: 4109

 

[Archduke]

31: The Spectacle at Muhlberg

The Saxon army parading at Muhlberg​

Everything was set for Friedrich Wilhelm, Fritz, and the rest of their company to leave Potsdam for Saxony. At long last, Sophia Dorothea and Wilhelmine would have some peace and calm without the brutish Friedrich Wilhelm lording over them. But the night before the King was set to depart, an ominous knock was heard at Wilhelmine's door. Almost immediately she cowered before her bed out of the fear that her father had come to unleash one last torrent of abuse before going. Instead, Fritz entered. He was almost unrecognizable. Rather than wearing the typical austere soldier's uniform that their father forced him to wear, Fritz was wearing an extravagant and vibrant set of French clothing. Rather than the dour and resigned face he usually wore, Fritz was smiling, he was beaming with joy and excitement. This sudden and odd transformation frightened Wilhelmine and left her almost speechless. The next words that Fritz spoke would turn that fright into terror and that almost into completely. That night, Fritz revealed that he had finally had enough of their father's criticisms, punches, glares. Fritz had endured his father's bullying and torture for too long and he would withstand no more. This was the final goodbye he would offer to Wilhelmine before he made his run for it during the trip to Saxony [1].

As Wilhelmine stood stunned by those words, Fritz tried to reassure her that their father had given him no choice and that this decision was one he had given great thought to. Fritz revealed that he had wanted to run since 1727, before the war [2]. But that war for an actual period of time rather than a brief set of days, Friedrich Wilhelm had smiled upon Fritz and welcomed him as his son. Friedrich Wilhelm had celebrated Fritz as a soldier, as a man, and as his heir. Fritz had been given hope that he and his father might reconcile after all those years. Instead, even before the war was over, Friedrich Wilhelm had returned to his former villainous self. At Herrenhausen when Fritz tried to enjoy the music, the culture, the clothes, and even the women, Friedrich Wilhelm had reprimanded Fritz for being a dandy who had no right to call himself the Crown Prince of Prussia [3]. He beat Friedrich Wilhelm mercilessly for associating with Anna Karolina, Countess Orzelska. Ever since then Fritz had not been allowed to enjoy so much as a single day of his life. No music, no clothing, nothing that Fritz actually wanted was permitted to him. Their father had even had a girl whipped for playing the flute to Fritz.

Fritz had thought about running away once the war was over and he was away from all the watchful eyes of the Prussian army. However, when he wrote to Griff asking for safe harbor in Brunswick-Luneburg, Griff revealed that he no longer held such power in Brunswick-Luneburg. Griff worried that George II would not give Fritz the sanctuary he sought because he could risk a Prussian invasion of Brunswick-Luneburg so soon after Empress Catherine's War. Meanwhile, the French ambassador to Prussia, Conrad-Alexandre de Rothenbourg, was not of much more help. He said that France understood the pain but recommended that Fritz remained in Prussia and not jeopardize his future [4]. So Fritz stayed and tried to shake off his father's daily torments. Fritz tried his best, but every day he wished to escape. When the Parmese Crisis and Clamei Crisis emerged Fritz had thought of running then, under the cover of war. Neither war ever came and Fritz never got the chance to escape. He was growing more desperate and depressed by the day and the only reason he had stayed these past months was because of the possibility of an Anglo-Prussian marriage for either himself or for Wilhelmine. If he could marry a British princess then Fritz could have some reprieve and distance from his father. Or if Wilhelmine could marry Griff then she could get out of Prussia and be safe, so Wilhelmine would not be in danger when Fritz did run [5].

In the end, the Anglo-Prussian marriages never culminated in anything. In fact, the hesitancy of George II and Caroline to say anything real or meaningful left Fritz even more hopeless of some peaceful escape in the future. With no marriage for Fritz to escape with, he would have to escape with his own feet [6]. Although Fritz was terrified of what might happen to Wilhelmine he left he promised that eventually, he would make his way to London. Once he was there he would throw himself at the feet of George II and Caroline and tell them in person about all the horrors that Friedrich Wilhelm had imposed on them. With him showing his scars and telling stories in person, there was no way that they would not seek to save Wilhelmine. Fritz was confident about it. If he escaped then he could find the help Wilhelmine needed to escape as well. She would be safe that was Fritz's promise. All he asked was that she tell no one about his plans, especially not their mother who would say the wrong thing to the wrong person and put everything at risk. Fritz would save them, he would [7].

Immediately, Wilhelmine doubted that Fritz's plan would succeed. Firstly, Fritz had revealed all of this in front of Wilhelmine's lady-in-waiting, Madame de Sonsfeldt [8]. Fritz lacked the necessary discretion to escape without alarming anyone. He would quickly be caught if he was not caught before he even escaped. Secondly, Fritz had no friends in Saxony. He had met some soldiers during the war but none who would assist him in this scheme. At least, none that Wilhelmine had heard of. And where was Fritz supposed to go? Saxony was in the heart of Europe, Fritz would have to cross hundreds of miles before he reached France and the Channel before he reached Britain. Even if either of those states was willing to give asylum to Fritz, there were dozens of German principalities separating them from Saxony and Wilhelmine was sure that these states would not let a wayward prince ride freely through their lands. No one would want to incur the wrath of Friedrich Wilhelm and the second-largest army in Germany. Fritz's escape was ludicrous if not completely impossible. Desperately, Wilhelmine tried to relay this message to Fritz and Madame de Sonsfeldt did as well. By the time he left Wilhelmine's chambers, Fritz had given her his promise that he would not run but Wilhelmine could not be so certain [9]. The next day, once more attired in a Prussian soldier's uniform, Fritz departed from Potsdam with his father.

Friedrich Wilhelm's trip to Saxony was necessitated by the ever-changing political landscape of Europe. Barely two years removed from the end of Empress Catherine's War and the geography of Europe was already completely different. In the west, Spain was no longer the enemy of Britain and the ally of the Hapsburgs but instead the reverse. Also, Spain now found itself aligned with Britain's ally Portugal through a double marriage of their heirs. France and Britain's stalwart alliance was faltering and to replace it, France had begun to steal away loyal subjects of the Emperor. First, France had tried to gain the Wittelsbach Union's members with British subsidies but British reluctance had left that effort floundering. Next, France had turned to the King of Poland and Elector Saxony, Augustus the Strong, and through promises of Frederick Augustus' election and hints at an unquestionably hereditary succession in Poland and Lithuania for the Wettins had purchased his allegiance [10]. Thus Saxony had flipped from being one of the leaders of the Emperor's forces to being a dagger held at his prized possession of Bohemia. That reverse in Saxon policy is why Friedrich Wilhelm was riding to Saxony. Augustus II understood that he could not withstand both the Emperor and Prussia, so he needed Prussia's alliance if he was to continue his friendship with France. On the other side, Friedrich Wilhelm thought the Emperor was insufficiently supportive during the spate over Clamei and also felt that the Emperor was being insincere over Julich-Berg. Britain might be unwilling to give Friedrich Wilhelm the support he needed to force the Emperor to respect him but Saxony was. On a side note, Friedrich Wilhelm did wonder if the Viennese Alliance still stood at all with Russia's new Emperor and the downfall of Menshikov. From what the Prussian agents in Russia were saying, the new Russian regime was an unstable mess that provided nowhere near the same threat as Catherine and Menshikov's had.

When Friedrich Wilhelm reached Mulhberg he was welcomed by a sight that called back to Henry VIII's Field of Gold or Friedrich Barbarossa's Mainz Tournament [11]. Over an expanse of ten square miles of cleanly cut grass stood a neatly organized city of lumber and bright green silk. Glittering throughout the city were golden knobs, staffs, and banners. Throughout the city were signs decorated in gold. that described what lay below. Towering over all of these structures was a painted pavilion that was gilded with gold and even had balconies on it. And behind the city on the hill of Radewitz an entire garden had been built from scratch. However, the most eye-catching item of all for Friedrich Wilhelm was the 30,000 strong Saxon army that was assembled in front of the camp. All of them were standing in formation adorned with new uniforms and muskets. The artillery fired a welcoming salute to Friedrich Wilhelm and the cavalry held their sabers in front of their faces. This formidable-looking army brought a smile to Friedrich Wilhelm's face and many complements when Augustus II rode up to greet him.

The notable persons at Mulhberg matched its splendor. The Prussians themselves had brought the bulk of their military and noble leadership including Prince Leopold of Anhalt-Dessau, General Friedrich Wilhelm von Grumbkow, General Wilhelm Dietrich von Buddenbrock, Prince Friedrich Wilhelm II of Schleswig-Holstein-Sonderburg-Beck, and Prince Christian August of Anhalt-Zerbst. The Saxons had brought practically every Saxon Duke and prince there was including Duke Frederick II of Saxe-Gotha-Altenburg, Duke Moritz Wilhelm of Sachsen-Merseburg, Duke Karl Friedrich of Sachsen-Meiningen, Duke Ernst August I of Saxe-Weimar-Eisenach, and Prince Johann Adolf of Saxe-Weissenfels. Besides the Germans, King Augustus II had brought his Polish entourage including the Lubomirskis and Czartoryskis. Beyond these subjects of Friedrich Wilhelm or Augustus II, there were several foreign rulers. The Duke of Bremen-Verden, Charles Augustus, and his wife, Tsarevna Elizabeth, had come to represent the interests of the Holstein-Gottorps. The recently restored Duke Karl Leopold of Mecklenburg-Schwerin had come to seek the support of Prussia and Saxony in his never-ending struggle against the knights of his duchy. Finally, Duke Maurice of Courland and his wife, Tsarevna Anna, had come so that Maurice could introduce his son to his father [12].

In spite of all these wondrous sights and esteemed company including the beautiful Anna Karolina, Fritz was looked sad and unhappy. He said little to anyone beyond the required formalities and he failed to join in the antics of Muhlberg including its heavy drinking. Friedrich Wilhelm felt like Fritz was being a bad guest and when he responded non-energetically to Friedrich Wilhelm's demand that he behave more appropriately, Friedrich Wilhelm began to remonstrate him loudly and publically. Throughout the next few days, Fritz's behavior failed to improve and Friedrich Wilhelm's frustration with him steadily grew until finally Friedrich Wilhelm reared up his cane and began to bash Fritz in front of a group of Prussian and Saxon officers and notables. No one dared to intervene. The Prussians because they knew better and the Saxons because they were willing to call it an internal family matter. After Friedrich Wilhelm tired himself out, he looked down on Fritz and saw him bleeding but saw no tears, no emotion at all behind his eyes. The sight disgusted Friedrich Wilhelm who loudly shouted that "Had I been treated so by my father, I would have blown my brains out: but you have no honor, you take all that comes!" Fritz's mute expression caused Friedrich Wilhelm to shake his head before storming off and leaving his son in a disheveled heap [13].

The next day, Friedrich Wilhelm and Augustus II spent the whole day discussing the friendship of their nations and the possibility of an anti-Hapsburg alliance. Augustus II was interested in securing Prussian support against the Polish nobility who would likely oppose any effort by Augustus II to change the constitution so that future elections would be restricted to his family and none others. Friedrich Wilhelm was willing to provide the necessary troops but asked in return for two things, one was that Augustus II's Poland should cede to Prussia the land between Ducal Prussia and the Electorate of Brandenburg. The other item that Friedrich Wilhelm requested was Augustus II's unwavering support for Prussia to inherit both Julich and Berg. Although Augustus II was quite willing to discuss the cession of some Polish districts, he worried that accepting Friedrich Wilhelm's demands for Julich-Berg would lock Augustus II out of gaining the friendship of the Wittelsbachs, who were on the other side of the Julich-Berg dispute. But Augustus II knew that Prussia's support was necessary and more important than the Wittelsbachs, so he tried to find a compromise that left room for a settlement with the Wittelsbachs. Augustus II dreamed of assembling a coalition of Electors against the Hapsburgs so that he could connect his own German electorate, Saxony, with Poland via Silesia. One possible means of compromise was a marriage between Friedrich Wilhelm's eldest daughter and Augustus II's grandson, Joseph Augustus [14]. This idea did receive some thought from Friedrich Wilhelm who thought it was a prestigious match and a good means of ridding himself of Wilhelmine, but Friedrich Wilhelm hesitated over committing to the match.

While Friedrich Wilhelm and Augustus II negotiated, Fritz approached one of Augustus II's Saxon ministers, Karl Heinrich von Hoym, and asked if Count Hoym would part with some Saxon horses so that Fritz could travel to Leipzig and see the great city for himself while there were no duties for him to attend to at Muhlberg. Count Hoym had seen the abuses that Friedrich Wilhelm inflicted on Fritz daily and could see Fritz's eyes that the boy was up to something. Smartly, Count Hoym declined Fritz's request with the excuse that Saxony is very particular about granting permissions. If Fritz wanted to see Leipzig then he should ask for horses and permission from his father and the Prussian army first. Quietly, Fritz nodded left Count Hoym company. He never did ask for permission from his father. Fritz knew what the outcome would be and his body carried too many bruises for him to want to incur more. Count Hoym also failed to inform his own monarch or the Prussians of the incident [15]. As one of the major proponents of the Franco-Saxon alliance, Count Hoym wanted to avoid any personal controversy while Saxony tried to add Prussia to this alliance. Count Hoym already had enough Imperial agents and allies trying to take him down. He did not need to be tied to Fritz and a possible escape attempt.

As these events transpired in Saxony, Sophia Dorothea carried out her own plan to revitalize the Anglo-Prussian double marriage scheme. Sophia Dorothea envisioned the immediate marriage of Wilhelmine and Prince Frederick and suggested that the two of them be made regents of Brunswick-Luneburg in George II's absence. Fritz's own marriage would be off for a few years but the engagement would be made at the same time as Wilhelmine's. Through this compromise, she hoped to get Wilhelmine the husband Sophia Dorothea had long planned for, and to keep Fritz's own future intact. She sent this arrangement to Caroline and hoped that Caroline would see the reason in it. At the same time, Sophia Dorothea wrote to Prince Frederick and suggested that he make a visit to Potsdam so that he could see Wilhelmine once more. Through this meeting, Sophia Dorothea hoped to solidify Prince Frederick's commitment to Wilhelmine and develop a commitment of Wilhelmine to Prince Frederick. Although Wilhelmine had found Prince Frederick tolerable at Herrenhausen, she had still been willing to contemplate marriage with the Prince of Saxe-Weissenfels. This attitude left Sophia Dorothea uneasy. She could not stand the idea of Wilhelmine married to such an old, fat, poor, and irrelevant prince when the heir to Great Britain and Ireland was pining over her.

Sophia Dorothea's characteristic indiscretion meant that she revealed this plan to one of her ladies-in-waiting, Madame de Ramen, who as it turns out was a spy for Friedrich Wilhelm [16]. Madame de Ramen immediately wrote to Friedrich Wilhelm of Sophia Dorothea's plan and when he saw it he immediately assumed that Fritz had been involved and had foreknowledge of it. As a consequence, Friedrich Wilhelm stormed over to Fritz's quarters and beat him viciously with his fists and his boots before dragging Fritz into the streets by his hair. Throughout the beating, Fritz only protested meekly and never once threw a punch back. This weak and submissive behavior just made Friedrich Wilhelm hit Fritz even harder. He wanted his son to fight back and show that he was a man but Fritz just took it all. Finally, Friedrich Wilhelm called over one of his officers and asked for a pistol. The officer hesitated because unwilling to be part of what he thought was about to be the murder of Fritz. The officer was wrong about Friedrich Wilhelm's intentions. After Friedrich Wilhelm took the gun off of the officer he presented it to Fritz and said, "Take it and shoot me as I know you want to, or shoot yourself just like the coward you are." When Fritz refused, Friedrich Wilhelm whipped him across the face with the pistol and threw it at the ground before walking away. As Friedrich Wilhelm's back was turned, Fritz for second reached out toward the pistol but the officer immediately stepped on it and picked up. Afterward, the officer helped Fritz to his feet and then went to grab one of the Prussian doctors [17].

As the meeting at Muhlberg drew to its close what was supposed to be its central spectacle, a full-scale mock battle took place. One army was by Johann Adolf of Saxe-Weissenfels and the other by Joseph Anton Gabaleon von Wackerbarth-Salmour. The battle began with the firing of tens of cannons, which were soon followed by the charging of cavalry. From the pavilion, Friedrich Wilhelm and Augustus II watched the battle unfold according to the plan drawn up by Augustus himself. Amidst all the smoke and commotion, Fritz slinked off and found his way to the camps set up behind both sides of the battlefield. Once there, he exchanged his Prussian uniform for a Saxon one before wandering toward the battlefield stables where he asked for a horse under the name of one of the Saxon officers he had encountered during Empress Catherine's War. The soldier in charge of the horses was suspicious as to why this Saxon officer before him was carrying as much gear as he was. But as the bridges over the Elbe were blown up and soldiers began to storm the trenches, there was all too much going on for the soldier to seriously question Fritz at the moment. So against his better judgment, the soldier allowed Fritz to take a horse and ride off into the smoke.

Once Fritz cleared the stables, he swung toward the west and began riding as hard as he could to create distance between himself and Muhlberg [18]. Fritz knew that by dinner, his father would discover his absence and send a search party after him. Fritz was hoping by then to halfway to Leipzig. With a day's lead, Fritz hoped he could stay just out of reach of his father and whoever he sent after him. However, Fritz would not even get that much time. Only an hour after Fritz had left the pavilion, one of his keepers, Colonel Friedrich Wilhelm von Rochow, found his prolonged absence strange and went to look for him. After failing to find him, Colonel von Rochow informed Friedrich Wilhelm and the Prussian entourage began to search the camp for Fritz. Also, soon after Fritz had ridden off the soldier found someone to inquire about the Saxon officer and his odd behavior. From there, it was discovered that the officer who Fritz claimed to be had been out in the mock battle all day. At once, the Saxons informed the Prussians who immediately figured out what Fritz had done. At moment, Count Hoym noted that Fritz had inquired about Leipzig previously. Thus, within a few hours, both Fritz's escape and the direction of his escape had been uncovered.

Immediately, Friedrich Wilhelm began to put together a search party of Prussians to go after Fritz and he also turned to Augustus II to ask for some horses and men to assist him. Augustus II offered Friedrich Wilhelm the services of his entire army because he recognized how severe Fritz's transgression was and how dangerous Count Hoym's failure to mention his encounter with Fritz was for Prusso-Saxon relations [19]. Additionally, Augustus II hoped to gain more favor with Friedrich Wilhelm to secure his adherence to the Franco-Saxon alliance. Together, the Saxons and Prussians began their search for Fritz. While some soldiers fanned out to the east in case of some duplicity by the Fritz, the rest all began to ride and march out to the west to scour the roads in between Muhlberg and Leipzig for signs of Fritz. Augustus II also sent his fastest riders to Leipzig, Meissen, and Wittenberg to put the cities on alert and have them send out their garrisons to catch Fritz.

Even though Fritz was a competent horseman, he was no expert. Nor was the Prussian prince knowledgeable of Saxony and how to get around it. All he had was a single set of maps detailing the best route from Leipzig to Frankfurt [20]. Fritz's situation was made worse by the fact that he had little money on him and few supplies. Only through the good fortune of Fritz being tired had he left the road to find someplace to rest did he avoid being noticed by the messengers riding from Muhlberg to Leipzig. Another stroke of good fortune saw Fritz find a shed to sleep that night. This was the last piece of good fortune that Fritz would have. The next day, after Fritz spotted some Saxon horsemen on the horizon, he abandoned his Saxon coat and the road to avoid being seen. The only reason that Fritz made it through the next two days without being found by the thousands of roaming Saxon soldiers was that Fritz got lost trying to find the road. When Fritz found it again, he did so outside of Grimma and did so while stumbling into a troop of Saxon cavalry. Although Fritz tried to turn and gallop away, the Saxon horses had been better rested and better fed and they caught up Fritz's exhausted horse.

The cavalrymen brought Fritz to their commander, Count Friedrich August of Rutowski, who recognized Fritz from their encounters at Herrenhausen and Muhlberg and verified that the captured boy was in fact the escaped prince. Desperately, Fritz begged Friedrich August to let him go. Fritz talked all the abuses he suffered and pointed that Friedrich August had seen the abuse with his own eyes. If Friedrich August had any mercy then he would not take Fritz back to Friedrich Wilhelm, he would not take Fritz to be beaten senselessly. These pleas failed to move Friedrich August who said that his father's orders were to bring Fritz back to Muhlberg immediately upon capture and Friedrich August would not disobey his father. In one last attempt, Fritz claimed that he would be killed by his father for trying to escape, but Friedrich August was incredulous at the thought of a German King killing his own son. The Germans were not brutes like the Russians, they would never stoop to that barbarity. Fritz resigned himself to his fate as he said that Friedrich August did not know his father. Then with a glint in his eyes, Fritz smiled and said that he hoped Friedrich August was right because if Fritz did survive then he would ensure that Friedrich August and Saxony were destroyed for their role in his capture. Fritz would burn Dresden to the ground once he was King in Prussia and Friedrich August would live the rest of his days knowing that he could have stopped the obliteration of his country if only he had shown mercy to an abused boy. The Count of Rutowski brushed these threats away and took Fritz back to Muhlberg.

When Fritz was returned to Muhlberg, everyone could see that Friedrich Wilhelm was seething with anger and his knuckles were wrapped so tight around his cane that they were white. Everyone knew what was about to happen but few wished to admit it. However, as soon as Fritz was taken his horse by the Count of Rutowski's troopers, Friedrich Wilhelm did exactly as expected and charged toward Fritz with his cane. No one stopped Friedrich Wilhelm from laying down the first blow nor the several that followed. However, when he seemed to reach for his sword, General von Buddenbrock, Colonel von Rochow, and Colonel von Dershau all jumped forward to themselves in between Friedrich Wilhelm and Fritz [21]. However, the interference of these officers only infuriated Friedrich Wilhelm more as they demanded that they step back and when they did not he threatened to strike them. The scene of a king and a father on the verge of murdering his heir and son in public was beyond appalling to the guests of Muhlberg. Augustus II was personally horrified by the scene and felt so unwell that he retired to his quarters.

Friedrich Wilhelm also retired to his quarters while his men took Fritz to General von Buddenbrock's. Fritz's own quarters had been thoroughly turned out when the Prussians were investigating Fritz's disappearance. Later that night, once Friedrich Wilhelm had calmed himself down he had Fritz questioned as to his intentions. Rather liberally Fritz admitted that his plan had been to escape to Alsace and go to the residence of Count de Rothenbourg, the former French ambassador to Prussia whom Fritz had made a friend of. At Strasbourg, Fritz was going to meet his friend Peter Karl Christoph von Keith, a lieutenant with the garrison at Wesel [22]. To Friedrich Wilhelm, this was a confession of desertion and accordingly, Friedrich Wilhelm had every intention of charging Fritz with that crime. However, Friedrich Wilhelm could sense that Augustus II wanted no part in Fritz's fate and wanted to have this whole affair taken away from his extravagant maneuvers and party. Friedrich Wilhelm decided to oblige Augustus II by leaving Muhlberg earlier than expected and without having concluded any new agreement with Saxony. Friedrich Wilhelm could be bothered to think about an alliance with France and Saxony, not when his son had just betrayed him. So Friedrich Wilhelm and the Prussian party departed from Muhlberg and returned to Brandenburg with Fritz in tow, and in chains [23].

[1] In OTL, Fritz's escape attempt was made in Saxony. In TTL, Fritz is also going to use the Saxon trip as the cover for his escape, because he cannot escape while in Brandenburg and while surrounded by Prussian soldiers.
[2] Fritz's desire to escape emerged before the POD.
[3] Fritz is able to get close to reconciling with his faith because he does as he is told while he is soldiering and acts like a man in Friedrich Wilhelm's eyes. However, once Fritz has an opportunity to enjoy culture and music, he does, which proves to Friedrich Wilhelm that Fritz has not changed. As a result, the abuse returns and no reconciliation occurs.
[4] In OTL, France did want to be involved in Fritz's escape attempts so Rothenburg rejected Fritz's requests for help. In TTL, I do not see any reason for France to change its stance.
[5] The Anglo-British marriages were the only thing that Fritz really regarded as avenues of escape besides actually escaping.
[6] Different from OTL, Anglo-British marriage negotiations did not get very serious. In OTL, Britain sent an envoy extraordinary, Charles Hotham, to negotiate the marriage and ultimately the negotiations failed. In TTL, Britain has not sent anyone and as of yet has not shown interest in the marriage. The end result is that Fritz does not believe the marriage will happen when he is about to leave for Saxony. In OTL, the envoy extraordinary went with the Prussians to Saxony as negotiations were still ongoing. Fritz still had an escape attempt but it was half-hearted. I assume Fritz would have tried harder had he been hopeless. In OTL, Fritz made his more serious escape attempts after the envoy extraordinary was insulted and negotiations are broken off.
[7] In OTL, Fritz promised he could save Wilhelmine after he escaped, which seems very unlikely to me. Either Fritz was lying to himself or to Wilhelmine.
[8] In OTL, Fritz did reveal his plan in front of Sonsfeldt. In TTL, I imagine his desperation means that he is still indiscrete.
[9] In OTL, Wilhelmine did get Fritz to promise not to run. However, Fritz did try, so it was a lie. In TTL, I imagine Fritz will make the same false promise just to calm Wilhelmine's nerves.
[10] In OTL, Augustus II was never a firm ally of the Emperor and did switch to the Anglo-French side of European affairs. In TTL, I imagine Augustus II can be convinced to do the same because he is an opportunist by nature. One major chip the French have in negotiations is their ability to promise to prevent Stanislaus Leszczynski's election and return to Poland because he is a guest of France and the father-in-law of Louis XV. For France, after facing a united Germany in Empress Catherine's War, France's diplomats would be working hard to break up the Emperor's coalition.
[11] Descriptions of Muhlberg and its activities are based on Thomas Carlyle's account of the OTL Muhlberg event. In TTL, the reason that this event is happening is that Augustus II wanted to show off his power and wealth similarly to OTL. Augustus II is also thinking about trying to match the glory of other European rulers who did well during Empress Catherine's War. This event is delayed a year from OTL due to the time needed to prepare it and fund it, which could only begin after the war's end in 1729.
[12] In OTL, the event was attended by many ruling princes of Europe including Karl Leopold of Mecklenburg-Schwerin. In TTL, Charles Agustus of Bremen-Verden comes because he does not trust the new Russian government and wants to ensure the protection of his state against Denmark-Norway through securing German support. In OTL, Maurice of Saxony came as his father's guest. In TTL, he comes again because is Augustus II's son. Also, as an important note, Maurice of Saxony does have a legitimate son.
[13] In OTL, the presence of all these notable people did nothing to stop Friedrich Wilhelm from beating Fritz in public. His personality is no different in TTL and his relationship with Fritz is even worse, so he also beats Fritz in public. In OTL, Friedrich Wilhelm also called out Fritz for not resisting and told him that he would have killed himself if the same had happened to him.
[14] In OTL, Augustus II did offer parts of Poland in return for Prussian military support in imposing a hereditary succession in Poland. These negotiations were ongoing when Augustus II. In TTL, these negotiations begin earlier because Saxony has reneged on its promise to guarantee the Pragmatic Sanction, which was a term of the Treaty of Vienna of 1729, and thus feels more at danger in its relations with the Emperor. There were also sporadic discussions of an Anglo-Saxon marriage but they never got serious. Here they are more serious because of the danger Saxony perceives.
[15] In OTL, Fritz did approach Count Hoym for horses to visit Leipzig. This request made up his Saxon escape attempt. Count Hoym refused Fritz's request and did not share the knowledge. I am not sure why Fritz asked Count Hoym rather than one of Saxony's generals or stewards, so I have kept this as OTL.
[16] Sophia Dorothea's household in OTL and TTL was filled with spies for Friedrich Wilhelm including Madame de Ramen.
[17] This event is not based on OTL except for the personalities of Fritz and Friedrich Wilhelm. What we see here is that Friedrich Wilhelm has been given another triggering event and has taken it out on Fritz as he usually did. As a sign of the escalating and worsening relations between father and son, Friedrich Wilhelm follows through on his previous statement and hints that Fritz should kill himself.
[18] In OTL, Fritz did not make a second attempt at escaping from Muhlberg. In TTL, he does because he has suffered more abuse at Muhlberg and because he has less hope of an Anglo-British match.
[19] I do not know how a monarch is supposed to react to a foreign prince running away in his state. There is one analogous event which is Tsarevitch Alexei running from Emperor Peter, but I do not think is comparable because Alexei ran to Italy away from his father's allies. Also, Friedrich Wilhelm is right there with Augustus II, so I feel like Augustus will be under a lot of pressure to provide support.
[20] While preparing to escape in OTL, Fritz had a map to Frankfurt drawn up for him, so I imagine that is the waypoint he would pick in TTL.
[21] In OTL, Friedrich Wilhelm was so mad that he drew his sword at Fritz. In TTL, Fritz has eluded Friedrich Wilhelm for days, so he is even angrier than OTL. Thus, Friedrich Wilhelm does draw sword and does so in public, in front of foreign dignitaries.
[22] Notice there is no Katte involved. In TTL, Katte's service during Empress Catherine's War saw him promoted in such a way that he avoided getting acquainted with Fritz.
[23] In OTL, Fritz was arrested in Prussia's western territories and held there for some time before being transferred to Kustrin. In TTL, Fritz has been arrested in Saxony where he cannot be held for an extended period of time. Thus, right away Fritz is being taken back to Brandenburg.

Word Count: 5809

 

[Archduke]

32: Prince Friedrich's Judgment

Arrest of Lieutenant Von Spaen​

As soon as the Prussian party had crossed the Saxon border with Brandenburg, Friedrich Wilhelm ordered that the questioning of Fritz resume. In this second period of questioning, Fritz stuck his story of running to France. This time, Fritz revealed to Colonel von Dershau that he intended to go to the French-held Fortress of Landau first before visiting the Count of Rothenbourg at Strasbourg. At Strasbourg, Fritz and his comrade Peter Karl Christoph von Keith would meet and travel to Paris where they would arrange travel to Italy so that they might take up service in the army of one of the northern Italian princes. While in Italian service, Fritz claimed he would seek to act bravely and earn honors so that he could regain his father's affection and earn a pardon [1]. As for the reason for Fritz's escape, Fritz reminded von Dershau of all the times he had seen Friedrich Wilhelm hit and beat Fritz. For both his own safety and honor, Fritz had needed to escape as this Saxon trip highlighted [2]. This whole story had been relayed with an aura of confidence and almost dismissive pleasure from Fritz to von Dershau's disconcertion [3]. What Fritz was not aware of as he weaved this tale was that the lies and cover-ups within his story had already been uncovered or were quickly being uncovered.

In Leipzig, just a day after Fritz's escape, Lieutenant Johann Heinrich Friedrich von Spaen was arrested by the Saxon garrison. Von Spaen was a known friend of Fritz and Colonel von Rochow suspected that von Spaen's presence in Leipzig during Fritz's escape attempt was not by mere chance. Von Rochow's suspicions were rewarded when the Saxons found von Spaen with a carriage, a map from Leipzig to Frankfurt am Main, supplies, French clothing, and most importantly a cache of letters [4]. While the Saxons searched for Fritz, King Friedrich Wilhelm, General Friedrich Wilhelm von Grumbkow, and General Wilhelm Dietrich von Buddenbrock interrogated von Spaen. The lieutenant conceded that he had purchased the carriage at Fritz's orders and with money given to him by Fritz, that the map had been specifically requested by Fritz, and that the letters were given to him by Fritz. Von Spaen also gave up that he was supposed to drive the carriage for Fritz. The mere discovery of a character who Fritz had completely neglected to mention already cast doubt on his story, but the letters were damning evidence [5].

Within this collection of papers, letters from his sister, the Prince of Brunswick-Luneburg, the Count of Rothenbourg, and the French and British ambassadors to Prussia were found. In each of these letters laid proof that these individuals were well aware of Fritz's intention to run. Certainly, Wilhelmine, Prince Frederick, and Brigadier Dubourgay had all tried to dissuade Fritz from running, but the fact remained that they knew about the scheme and they had said nothing to Friedrich Wilhelm. Just as Friedrich Wilhelm would have expected, Wilhelmine was involved, but for Prince Frederick and the British to also sit by silently was not a crime that he would forgive or forget [6]. In contrast to these efforts of dissuasion, the Count of Rothenbourg letter extended an invitation to Fritz for him to say at his estate in Alsace. Although Friedrich Wilhelm was displeased that a former diplomat to Prussia with who Friedrich Wilhelm had never had any quarrels was now a part of his son's desertion, Friedrich Wilhelm was much more upset by the letters he read from the current French ambassador, Sauveterre. In these letters, Friedrich Wilhelm saw France offer asylum to Fritz and promise not to extradite him [7]. This was undeniable complicity and Friedrich Wilhelm was going to punish France for it. For Fritz, the problem with these letters was not that they took away from his main story of going to France. The letters already confirmed that story. Instead, the issue with these letters is that their language revealed that this escape was not some decision taken on a whim but rather one that had been discussed long in advance. Also, the letters revealed Wilhelmine's role in the plot, which Fritz had failed to inform Friedrich Wilhelm of [8].

The involvement of Wilhelmine and France led Friedrich Wilhelm to think that something greater than desertion was afoot. Rather than Fritz's plan just being to run away and regain his honor, Friedrich Wilhelm thought that Fritz's plan involved escaping the country ahead of some French effort to kill Friedrich Wilhelm. Perhaps the French or even Wilhelmine meant to poison Friedrich Wilhelm so that Fritz could inherit before his time [9]. The thought of murder was the reason that once the Prussian party returned to Brandenburg that Friedrich Wilhelm ordered Fritz be conveyed to the distant Fortress of Kustrin rather than returned to Potsdam, which Friedrich Wilhelm eared might be a hotbed of betrayal and deceit. Only Friedrich Wilhelm and his trusted officers such as General Friedrich Wilhelm von Grumbkow and General Wilhelm Dietrich von Buddenbrock went on to Potsdam.

During Fritz's escapade and subsequent return to Brandenburg in chains, Potsdam was not left unaware of the situation. In fact, Friedrich Wilhelm himself wrote to some members of the court and his wife, Sophia Dorothea, of Fritz's desertion and arrest. For many, this news created concern and trepidation that they might be punished for whatever minor kindnesses they had shown Fritz. For Wilhelmine, this news was a tragedy as she immediately worried that her foreknowledge of the event would be used to persecute her. This fear is why Wilhelmine thought she had stumbled upon a miracle when Countess von Finck secretly brought a chest of letters of Fritz's into the palace so that Wilhelmine might be able to examine it and determine what to do with it. With the help of her mother, Countess von Finck, and Madame de Sonsfelt, Wilhelmine opened the chest and burned hundreds of letters bearing incriminating words. Some of the letters discussed frustration with the King, strong support for the Anglo-Prussian marriage, and some even mentioned and hinted at the possibility of escape. After these letters were destroyed, the four women did their best to refill the chest with forged letters of a more calm disposition. However, as morning approached they had only written between 500 and 700 letters, but the chest had contained well over a thousand. The group felt that they needed to return the chest to its original location and prepare for their regular appearances at court to avoid being caught, so they decided to fill the remaining space in the chest with trinkets. Through this deception, Wilhelmine thought that she could avoid the worst of her father's anger over Fritz's escape [10].

Wilhelmine's thoughts proved to be wrong and her hopes to be misplaced. When Friedrich Wilhelm returned to Potsdam and Wilhelmine dared to show her face, he immediately set upon her and struck her in the face, which knocked her to the floor [11]. The courtiers tried to set in but Friedrich Wilhelm just grabbed Wilhelmine by the hair and demanded to know where Fritz's chest of letters was. Sophia Dorothea spurted out its location without thinking about what her knowledge of it might suggest. This answer did get Friedrich Wilhelm to release his grip on Wilhelmine as Sophia Dorothea had hoped. Instead, Friedrich Wilhelm began to march toward the chest's location with his hand finally holding on to Wilhelmine's hair and dragging her in its direction. Again, the courtiers tried to stop Friedrich Wilhelm from treating his daughter in this manner and this time when they tried to get in his way, he just struck them down too [12]. Incapable of laying their own hands on the sovereign, the courtiers meekly retreated from Friedrich Wilhelm's space and just used their voices to try to shake Friedrich Wilhelm's grasp. No words moved Friedrich Wilhelm's fingers and the only movement he made was his march to the chest. Once he found it, he threw it on the ground to break it open, and out of it cascaded the letters and trinkets. Friedrich Wilhelm demanded to know if he would find any evidence of Wilhelmine's role in Fritz's escape in those letters. When Wilhelmine claimed no because she knew nothing, Friedrich Wilhelm roared with a burst of vicious laughter and told her that her role had already been revealed. If Friedrich Wilhelm did not find any letters in that chest to indicate Wilhelmine's role then he would know that she had tampered with the chest. Next, Friedrich Wilhelm turned to Sophia Dorothea to ask why she knew when the chest was. Her answer of just knowing the chest's location and not its contents only left Friedrich Wilhelm shaking his head in disagreement. Sophia Dorothea tried to plead her innocence but all Friedrich Wilhelm said before marching off was that the courts would decide that [13].

General Grumbkow was given the responsibility of overseeing the reading and review of the letters. As Wilhelmine said, nothing incriminating against her was found. However, Friedrich Wilhelm did not buy Wilhelmine's lies that she had not done anything to the chest or its contents. Accordingly, Friedrich Wilhelm sent a letter to Colonel von Dershau to inform Fritz that his chest had been found and that the King wanted Fritz to honestly describe all its contents. Fritz was concerned by this question and smartly tried to say as little as possible. So Fritz admitted that the chest was filled with letters, but did not describe their number, their contents, nor their correspondents. However, when von Dershau pressed Fritz to admit if anything else besides the letters was in the box, he stood firm and said that there was nothing but letters. Thus, Fritz unwittingly betrayed Wilhelmine because he made no mention of trinkets. This was taken as firm evidence that Wilhelmine and perhaps even Sophia Dorothea had opened the chest and replaced its contents [14]. As a result, Friedrich Wilhelm refused to admit any of the letters as evidence. For the next several days, Friedrich Wilhelm did not speak to either his wife or his eldest daughter. While Sophia Dorothea was allowed the freedom to roam the palace, Wilhelmine was restricted to her chambers under an armed guard.

The first setback for Friedrich Wilhelm's investigation came when Sauveterre guessed that the Prussians were aware of his and France's role in the affair and he exited the country while his diplomatic papers were still good. An even bigger setback came in the form of Peter Karl Christoph von Keith escaping his regiment at Wesel. Ironically, he did so under the guise of pursuing a desert, which is exactly what Keith ended up being when he illegally crossed the Prussian border with the Dutch Republic and sought asylum there [15]. The poor Prusso-Dutch relations led to that asylum being granted initially. However, the Prussian ambassador to the States-General and Grand Pensionary, Meinertshagen, was able to secure permission to extradite Keith after revealing the extent of Keith's role in Fritz's escape attempt. This came too late as, by this point, Keith had already gone to the British ambassador, Philip Stanhope, 4th Earl of Chesterfield, and secured permission to go to Britain. Meinertshagen was unable to convince the Dutch to intervene and the new Prussian ambassador to Britain, Christoph Martin von Degenfeld-Schonburg, had no better luck with getting the British to agree to extradition. Thus, one sponsor of the plant, one member of the plot, and the information they carried eluded Prussian agents [16].

Friedrich Wilhelm did not let these setbacks deter him from seeking the justice he wanted. If he could not get the information from Sauveterre and Keith then he would get it from Von Spaen and Fritz. Friedrich Wilhelm even considered using torture to ensure that von Spaen had revealed all he had to tell. Only Grumbkow of all people stopped Friedrich Wilhelm because even he understood that torture was a step too far. Under further questioning, von Spaen did not reveal much more except that von Spaen had no intention of going any further than Frankfurt nor of joining a different army. This supposed loyalty to Prussia did not earn von Spaen any sympathy from Friedrich Wilhelm who instinctively felt like von Spaen was lying. For Fritz, torture was not considered. Even if Friedrich Wilhelm had ceased to call him Crown Prince in all his orders regarding Fritz, the fact of the matter was that Fritz was the Crown Prince and no one would have dared to torture him. Instead, Generals Grumbkow and Caspar Otto von Glasenapp, Colonel Egidius Ehrentreich von Sydow, and two auditors, Mylius and Gerbett, questioned Fritz. Still unaware of von Spaen's capture or the seizure of his letters, Fritz approached this set of questions playfully and tried to speak fast to give pain to the recorder.

With the newest questionings of von Spaen and Fritz having failed to reveal the wanted incriminating evidence of a plot by Fritz against Friedrich Wilhelm, the King ordered Mylius to assemble a more rigorous set of questions numbering almost 200. This way every detail of the plot, the Anglo-Prussian marriages, and the last few years could be covered, and there would be plenty of opportunities for Fritz to split up and reveal himself. To Mylius' questions, Friedrich Wilhelm attached five of his own. Their tenor did suit Mylius and he tried in vain to get Friedrich Wilhelm to retract them. When the King refused, Mylius instead got the king to put into writing that these questions were his own and that Mylius was merely acting as a messenger and would take responsibility for these questions. Once again, Fritz showed himself to be a very intelligent youth who could withstand these questions and answer them all appropriately. Even when Fritz got to the King's questions, he answered well. When asked what he thought he deserved, Fritz submitted to the will of King. When asked about his desertion, he claimed that he did not believe he had truly deserted. When asked if he should be the next king, he said that no man can judge his own worth as a king. When asked if his life should be spared, he again submitted to the will of the king. Only when the last question came did Fritz seem to stumble. The last question asserted that Fritz was no fit heir and asked if he would renounce his succession to preserve his life. This question, especially the part about preserving his life, troubled Fritz and gave him pause for a second. In time, he answered that he did hold life that dearly but thought that the King would not actually use such methods. Death or renunciation, that was a serious matter much more serious than Fritz had thought his punishment would be. Finally, Fritz admitted that he had done wrong and asked for clemency [17].

Fritz's anxiety only grew after the examination when new protocols were put into place for his imprisonment at Kustrin. Under the instructions of Friedrich Wilhelm, Fritz's cell gained two new heavy locks, which only Kustrin's commander, General Otto Gustav von Lepel, had the keys to. At eight each day, two captains opened the gate and riffled through Fritz's belongings to ensure that nothing was amiss while Fritz was given a single glass of water to drink and a basin of water to wash himself. In under 4 minutes, the captains were gone and the door was shut. At noon, the door opened again and a plate of pre-cut food and more water was brought to Fritz while the glass and basin from the morning were removed. Fritz was given no utensils and forced to eat with his bare hands. At six in the afternoon, the door opened for the final time each day. Again, Fritz was given a plate of pre-cut food and a new glass while his plate and glass from lunch were removed. The next morning at eight the plate and glass from supper would be exchanged for a new basin and glass. At no point did anyone talk to Fritz no matter what he said. The soldiers barely even looked at him, and every time they were in and out in under 4 minutes. It was mechanical clockwork and it had the effect of making Fritz feel more and more comfortable with each passing day [18].

Based on the answers that Fritz had given during his examination, numerous people were punished for their association with Fritz. The prisoner revealed that in Potsdam he had met a girl, Elizabeth Ritter, the daughter of a church cantor, and had frequented her house. When they were together, they played music with a harpsichord and a flute. Fritz had even given her money and a dress. This behavior immediately conjured the idea that she might have been having an affair with Fritz, but a midwife and surgeon found that the girl was still a virgin. Nevertheless, the girl was punished by having her whipped and then sent to prison in Spandau. Her father went unpunished because the visits always happened while he was away and his protestations of innocence were believed. In contrast, the officer who accompanied Fritz on these trips, Lieutenant Johann Ludwig von Ingersleben, was placed under arrest and investigate for his knowledge of Fritz's escape attempt. Von Ingersleben had the good fortune of not knowing anything but he remained imprisoned until judgment could be passed on his misdemeanor. Others did not have to wait to receive their punishment, Fritz's old tutor, Duhan, and the keeper of Fritz's private library, Jacques, were exiled to Memel. Regarding the private library, its books were sent to Hamburg to be sold off much like other unwelcome possessions of Fritz's [19].

Ultimately, Fritz's desperation for human interaction led him to tell the guards during one of their visits that he had more to say to the examiners. The guards passed the message along and the examiners did return. However, it became obvious that Fritz had nothing to say, he just wanted to have the opportunity to talk and have people talk back. When the examiners were ready to leave, Fritz stopped them by asking if his choices were really just between life imprisonment and death to which Grumbkow said he did not recall discussing life imprisonment. This statement left Fritz fearing for his life and he offered to renounce his rights and his throne if only to have the opportunity to continue to live. The examiners promised to pass on the message to Friedrich Wilhelm. Having grabbed their attention, Fritz asked if he might also have his uniform returned to him and how his family was doing. At this point, the examiners revealed that Wilhelmine was imprisoned but they lied and said that Sophia Dorothea wanted nothing to do with him. To that Fritz tried to gin Friedrich Wilhelm's favor by pleading for Friedrich Wilhelm to reconcile mother and son. Out of all this Fritz only got a short written reply from his father, "You removed your uniform by your own volition. You have made it clear that you want no place in my army and I have no place for you" [20].

As Fritz remained imprisoned in Kustrin and all his friends were either exiled, imprisoned, or on the run, the whole of Europe began to think that Friedrich Wilhelm meant to execute his son. In Potsdam, courtiers were begging Friedrich Wilhelm to show Fritz mercy and reminded him of how poorly Europe had looked upon Felipe II and Peter I after the deaths of Don Carlos and Tsarevitch Alexei. Whether Friedrich Wilhelm let Fritz die in prison or took his head with his own saber, Europe would not look kindly upon him, and neither would God. Of Felipe II's many sons, only a single one had survived and of Peter I's sons, none lived. God had shown he did not condone a father's killing of one's son. Beyond Potsdam, the courts of Sweden, Britain, the Dutch Republic, Russia, the Holy Roman Emperor, and even Saxony all pleaded the case of Fritz as a youthful indiscretion that should be forgiven and forgotten. These letters only served to anger Friedrich Wilhelm as he saw them as yet further unwanted interferences in his familial affairs [21]. If anything, the letters and supplications only made Friedrich Wilhelm contemplate the execution of his son more. Someone needed to pay for the embarrassment that Friedrich Wilhelm had suffered.

Friedrich Wilhelm was unwilling to condemn his son alone. Instead, he called for a court-martial of his son, von Keith, von Spaen, and von Ingersleben. Since every officer tried to recuse himself from the trial, Friedrich Wilhelm had lots drawn to choose the officers for the trial. In total, three captains, majors, lieutenant-colonels, colonels, and major-generals were to sit on the council and make a judgment with Lieutenant General Achaz von der Schulenburg acting as their president. Each rank would have a single vote and so too would the president [22]. The council deliberated on the easiest case first, von Keith's. Von Keith had actually successfully deserted the Prussian army and fled to Britain. He was well and truly a deserter of the Prussian military and thus would be subject to death if he was in Prussian custody. Since he was not, all the officers agreed that he should be burned in effigy. The next case the officers turned to was von Ingersleben's. As far as they could tell he was not involved in the escape plan and only involved in this incident with the girl. Thus, all the officers felt a light sentence was in order ranging from two to four months imprisonment [23].

Von Spaen's case was more complicated [24]. From all the evidence and testimony before them it was obvious that von Spaen had a key role in Fritz's desertion effort, but von Spaen himself seemed to indicate that he did not want to desert. If they accepted that von Spaen did not want to desert and was merely facilitating Fritz then the judgment of von Spaen in term became an issue of judging Fritz. Instead, if the officers claimed that von Spaen had intended to desert despite his testimony then they could judge von Spaen on the merits of his actions alone. The captains considered if Fritz would have been willing to undertake any action without such a willing companion and also pointed out that von Spaen had sought leave from the camp at Muhlberg under false pretense. Additionally, since von Spaen meant to leave Leipzig with Fritz, he would have been absent without leave for long enough to have been no better than a desert. Accordingly, the captains condemned von Spaen to death. The majors also came to the conclusion that von Spaen's actions were in essence desertion and also put weight on his possession of letters bearing foreign involvement in the escape, so they too declared von Spaen guilty and recommended his punishment as death. The lieutenant-colonels reached a similar conclusion while placing their emphasis on the fact that von Spaen had a responsibility to inform the King and dissuade Fritz, neither of which he had performed. Thus they too condemned von Spaen to death. The judgment of the colonels was only slightly different in that they pointed to von Spaen's legitimate remorse over his role in the plot and his cooperation during the investigation by surrendering all the letters. Thus, the colonels suggest life imprisonment was a suitable punishment. Of all the officers only the major-generals, all three of whom were familiar with von Spaen's father, thought that von Spaen had no intention to desert himself. For that reason as well as von Spaen's cooperation, the major-generals concluded that life imprisonment should be von Spaen's punishment.

While most of the officers had been willing to push the limits of the evidence against von Spaen and suggest a harsh punishment, the officers went the opposite direction with Fritz's case. The captains refused to denounce Fritz's action as a desertion because they put it, Fritz was in Saxony on a diplomatic trip and thus was in Saxony as the Crown Prince. The captains could make no judgment on what Fritz did as crown prince, only what he did as an officer. Thus, the captains as vassals of Prussia could make no judgment. The majors similarly hid behind Fritz's place as crown prince by saying that only royal judgment could be passed against Fritz and that if the majors passed any judgment then it would have been a usurpation of royal power. The lieutenant colonels were willing to condemn the actions of Fritz but again had no judgment to pass as they found no laws under which they could act. The colonels similarly said that they had no place to judge a Crown Prince on the manner of a "retreat" for they dared not call it desertion. The colonels offered their apologies for their incompetence but gave Friedrich Wilhelm no more. Finally, the major-generals condemned the misbehavior of the Crown Prince but begged for pardon without saying what punishment he should be pardoned from [25].

All of these judgments were combined and reviewed by General von der Schulenburg who as the president of the court-martial would make the final recommendations to King Friedrich Wilhelm. For Keith, von der Schulenburg made no changes to the judgment and condemned the officer to death and burning in effigy in his absence. For von Ingersleben, von der Schulenburg went with the more harsh punishment of 4 months, because he could sense Friedrich Wilhelm's own feelings. However, for von Spaen, von der Schulenberg actually recommended life imprisonment rather than death. Even though the general knew that Friedrich Wilhelm would have preferred a death sentence, von der Schulenberg could not bring himself to issue one. Finally, regarding the prince, von der Schulenberg declared himself and his council to be incompetent. When this set of judgments was passed on to Friedrich Wilhelm he refused to accept it. Although nothing could be done about Keith, Friedrich Wilhelm felt that von Ingersleben had been more involved than the council admitted, that von Spaen deserved death, and that the prince needed to be judged. However, when Friedrich Wilhelm demanded the court revise its judgments it courageously refused to budge. Instead, standing behind biblical passages that enumerated their incompetence to judge the prince, they remained defiant [26].

After being refused by the court-martial, Friedrich Wilhelm decided to issue his final judgments. Friedrich consented to the punishment of Keith and even of von Ingersleben. However, Friedrich Wilhelm condemned von Spaen to death in contrast to the final judgment of von der Schulenberg. Friedrich Wilhelm admitted the unusualness of a king increasing a sentence rather than commuting one but stated Fiat justitiu et pereut mundus, let justice be done, though the world perish. In other words, Friedrich Wilhelm felt that despite the court-martial that justice above all needed to be instituted and that was the justice that Friedrich Wilhelm perceived. This defiance of the court-martial made many fear for the life or succession of Fritz. Those fears only grew after Friedrich Wilhelm refused the pleas of Lieutenant von Spaen's father, Major-General Alexander Bernhard von Spaen, to show mercy to his son. In late October, von Spaen was conveyed to Kustrin without informing Fritz of his arrival. The young man was given a last meal and a chance to pray and then one last night of rest. The next morning, on October 29, 1731, von Spaen was marched to the courtyard below the window of Fritz while guards entered Fritz's room at an irregular time and directed him to the window. When Fritz saw his comrade von Spaen below he immediately perceived what was happened and begged that von Spaen be shown mercy. He was only trying to help Fritz and Fritz had ordered him to do so. However, no one responded to Fritz's pleas for mercy. Von Spaen himself had already come to accept the fate over the days before so he did not cry out for help nor toss blame the way of Fritz. Instead, von Spaen rather stoically saluted Fritz and asked that his prince do what was necessary to avenge him and provide for his sister. Fritz apologized for involving him in all this and von Spaen only nodded. Moments later after the priest had issued one final prayer, the executioner drew his sword and Fritz had to watch as one of his friends and comrades was decapitated in front of his own eyes [27].

In the days that followed von Spaen's execution, everyone expected Fritz to follow shortly after, even Fritz himself thought so. For this reason, Wilhelmine offered to marry any man of her father's choosing so long as Fritz's life was spared. Friedrich Wilhelm told her that the man would be the Prince of Saxe-Weissenfels and that they would be married before the year's end and then asked if she stood by her statement [28]. When she said yes, Friedrich Wilhelm informed her that he would provide her with no dowry at all and that she would not have a new dress, at least not one he paid for. Again, Wilhelmine said she would marry him. Friedrich Wilhelm smiled and thanked her for finally seeing reason and sent her off. This was the first smile that Wilhelmine had received from her father in years and marked a mild reconciliation between them, but the incident also marked the end of Wilhelmine's friendship with her mother. Once her mother found out about Wilhelmine's decision, she screamed and railed against her and begged her to change her mind, but Wilhelmine did not. Wilhelmine thought that this was the only way to save Fritz and she was willing to make that sacrifice. Sophia Dorothea, however, could not accept that answer and she refused to talk with Wilhelmine afterward.

Two months later just as promised, Wilhelmine married Prince Johann Adolf of Saxe-Weissenfels before being sent off to Saxony. Fritz suffered no harm in the period in between von Spaen's execution and Wilhelmine's marriage and no harm afterward. However, what Wilhelmine had not known when she rode off with Prince Johann Adolf was that her father had abandoned the thought of killing or even disinheriting Fritz even before he had von Spaen executed. Grumbkow for once had taken the side of Fritz and had talked with Friedrich Wilhelm endlessly about the difficulties in executing Fritz. Grumbkow pointed out that as an heir to an electorate that Fritz was not just the son of Friedrich Wilhelm nor a subject of Prussia but a subject of the Holy Roman Emperor and without his approval and the approval of the Imperial Aulic Court, an execution impossible. Once Friedrich Wilhelm was brought to understand that death was impossible he quickly agreed on his own terms that disinheritance did not make sense. Friedrich Wilhelm did not believe that Fritz was genuine when he offered to renounce his throne and if there were doubts about Fritz's renunciation then he would become a destabilizing threat to his brother, August Wilhelm's, reign. In that way, disinheriting Fritz might be even more harmful than letting the dandy inherit the throne. Even if Fritz was inclined toward effeminate predilections, he had shown he was a decent soldier. Perhaps with the right behind him, he would not doom Friedrich Wilhelm's Prussia [29]. For that reason, following the execution of von Spaen, Friedrich Wilhelm had kept von Spaen's priest at Kustrin to rectify the immorality of the prince. Wilhelmine's sacrifice made no impact on Friedrich Wilhelm's treatment of Fritz. Instead, it was only through the positive reports of that priest that Fritz slowly earned the rights to better found and pen and paper.

In the wake of Fritz's abortive escape attempt, the Crown Prince of Prussia had been imprisoned in Kustrin and remained there as 1732 arrived, his eldest sister had been married to a man far below her in status and in rank, and her mother had lost all her influence at court. Fritz's escape and judgment also seriously affected the relations of Prussia with other states. Friedrich Wilhelm was sincerely thankful for the role that Saxony had played in capturing Fritz and even their later interference in Friedrich Wilhelm's handling of Fritz did not wash away that gratitude. However, Fritz's escape had disrupted Prusso-Saxony negotiations and led to Friedrich Wilhelm focusing on dealing with Fritz rather than signing a new Prusso-Saxon alliance at Muhlburg. Later on, the evidence of France's role in Fritz's escape had seriously damaged Prusso-French relations and forced a change of French ambassadors with Sauveterre being exchanged for Jacques-Joachim Trotti, Marquis de La Chétardie [30]. However, even Sauveterre's dismissal and subsequent punishment in France did not allow for Versailles' approval of Fritz's asylum request to be forgotten. Instead, Friedrich Wilhelm viewed the French with even more suspicion and thus could not look kindly upon the Franco-Saxon alliance. However, at the same time, Friedrich Wilhelm's relationships with Britain and the Holy Roman Emperor were also no better. Britain's failure to inform Friedrich Wilhelm of Fritz's plans left him disgruntled and disdainful toward Britain while the Holy Roman Emperor's refusal to back Friedrich Wilhelm on a more serious punishment for Fritz left a bad taste in Friedrich Wilhelm's mouth. Overall, stories of Friedrich Wilhelm's brutal treatment of Fritz at Muhlberg and Wilhelmine at Potsdam had caused many European leaders to look down upon Friedrich Wilhelm with some sense of moral superiority. In the end, Friedrich Wilhelm exited this whole episode even more isolated than before and so he would have to look for new and different friends among the courts of Europe.

[1] This is the same claim that Fritz come up with in OTL.
[2] This is the same reason Fritz gave in OTL, because the reason is the same in TTL.
[3] For some reason, Fritz did not take his arrest very seriously at first and entered his interrogations confidently.
[4] Von Spaen in OTL was a friend of Fritz's. I am not sure when that friendship was formed so I have kept him as a friend TTL. In OTL, von Spaen was part of Fritz's Saxon escape attempt and had a carriage ready in Leipzig. I assume that von Spaen would be willing to do the same in TTL, especially considering the treatment of Fritz that he saw early on during the Muhlberg event.
[5] In OTL, Fritz's valet had possession of his letters and burned them. In TTL, Fritz would not leave his letters behind at his quarters in Muhlberg and I assume he would not carry them himself for risk of being caught with them. Instead, he gives them to von Spaen who is going ahead to Leipzig. Von Spaen does not have time to burn them because he is arrested before Fritz is caught. This is a major difference from OTL and will factor into certain people's fates.
[6] In OTL, Friedrich Wilhelm found out that Britain had paid off Fritz's debts, which fueled his suspicion of them. In TTL, they have not paid off those debts, so the only charge is that they failed to inform Friedrich Wilhelm of Fritz's escape plans. This is a diplomatic breach rather than a subversion.
[7] In OTL, Friedrich Wilhelm suspected France of being more involved but found no evidence. In OTL, the French actually were more involved in that Rothenbourg had drawn up some plans of a coup, which were never advanced and Sauveterre had secured Fritz a promise of asylum. In TTL, the French promise of asylum has been found, which will affect the Franco-Prussian relationship.
[8] In OTL, Friedrich Wilhelm knew that Wilhelmine had played a role but never could prove it. In TTL, he can.
[9] This was an OTL concern of Friedrich Wilhelm for the same reasons.
[10] In OTL the same episode occurred. I have kept it in TTL because of Countess von Finck's friendship with Sophia Dorothea and Wilhelmine.
[11] In OTL, Friedrich Wilhelm attacked Wilhelmine upon returning to Potsdam. In TTL, with proof of her involvement, he attacks also and does so more severely.
[12] In OTL, Friedrich Wilhelm was calmed down once he took Wilhelmine to the floor. In TTL, he is far more furious, so he does not calm down.
[13] In OTL, the blame fell mainly on Wilhelmine and Fritz. In TTL, due to the greater humiliation suffered by Friedrich Wilhelm with Fritz actually escaping, he is going to seek to blame more people.
[14] In OTL, Grumbkow also figured out that the contents of the chest had been tampered with because Fritz did not recognize the trinkets.
[15] In OTL, Keith barely escaped but in TTL by the virtue of Fritz being arrested in Saxony, Keith has more time to escape and does so with more comfort.
[16] In OTL, the British gave safe harbor to Keith. In TTL, with worse Anglo-Prussian relations they will do the same.
[17] The five questions and answers are based on the OTL questions and answers.
[18] This strict solitary confinement is also based on Fritz's OTL treatment.
[19] The involvement and punishment of these individuals are mostly the same as OTL. The only difference is that von Ingersleben is less involved in Fritz's escape attempt than OTL because von Ingersleben only got involved with the second escape attempt at Ansbach in OTL and barely got involved. To me, that means that Fritz did not trust von Ingersleben to the extent to make him a full part of the escape attempt in TTL.
[20] In OTL, Fritz did not actually successfully escape. In TTL, he did and he switched his uniform to do so. So in TTL, Friedrich Wilhelm is placing the blame on Fritz and saying that he did this to himself whereas, in OTL, Friedrich Wilhelm simply stated that Fritz was a bad person and he wanted nothing to do with him.
[21] Supplications were not seen to have much influence on Friedrich Wilhelm in OTL and do not in TTL.
[22] This is the same court-martial setup as in OTL.
[23] Keith suffers the same punishment as OTL because like in OTL he does desert, but von Ingersleben is given a slightly lighter judgment than OTL where he was sentenced to 6 months because he is not at all involved in the escape attempt.
[24] In OTL, the officers had similar difficulties judging Katte's case, but importantly Katte actually said he would have deserted had Fritz deserted. Von Spaen is saying that he would not have. He merely would have gone AWOL, because I have never seen anything saying that von Spaen was going to go to France. Just Keith, Katte, and Fritz. Nevertheless, an extended AWOL is desertion typically and he did assist Fritz in accomplishing desertion like Katte did.
[25] In OTL, the officers also felt this was not their place and in TTL there is no reason for them to feel differently. They just use slightly different arguments than OTL since in TTL Fritz did actually desert.
[26] In OTL, Friedrich Wilhelm also pushed for the court to issue revised punishments to no avail.
[27] Whether you think Katte was Fritz's lover or not, the fact of the matter was that he was a much closer friend of Fritz than von Spaen. So in TTL rather than Fritz losing a best friend/lover he is losing a good friend but more so a brother in arms than anything else. There is a possibility that von Spaen was gay as he died unmarried, but I am not going to make that assumption. I have von Spaen dying like a soldier because his career suggested that he dedicated to the army.
[28] In OTL, Wilhelmine insincerely made this offer but as soon as Friedrich Wilhelm firmly said she would marry the Prince of Saxe-Weissenfels she began to backtrack. In TTL, with Fritz having committed a more serious crime, it looks more like Fritz might suffer a real punishment. For this reason, Wilhelmine does actually agree to marry Saxe-Weissenfels.
[29] In OTL, Friedrich Wilhelm abandoned thoughts of execution to disinheritance for similar arguments that still stand in OTL, even if Friedrich Wilhelm is more furious in TTL than OTL.
[30] Sauveterre was never more than a temporary placement. He was just a lawyer without any diplomatic experience. In OTL, Sauveterre was replaced by Le Chetardie in the wake of Sauveterre's role in Fritz's Ansbach escape attempt. I have kept Le Chetardie because he is an interesting figure and he was already destined for a diplomatic career.

Word Count: 6776

 

[Archduke]

33: Russia without Menshikov

Tsarevna Natalya Alexeyevna​

In the wake of Prince Aleksander Menshikov's fall from grace, two clans stepped forward to try and fill the shoes left behind by the great man. One family, the Golitsyns were among the most ancient and honored families in Russia, and among their number they counted the esteemed Prince Dmitry Mikhailovich Golitsyn, member of the Supreme Privy Council, and Marshal Mikhail Mikhailovich Golitsyn, a familiar military hero who had won Russia victories from the Battle of Lesnaya to the conquest of Finland. The other family was slightly less old and less prestigious but still one of Russia's more revered clans, the Dolgorukovs. The Dolgorukovs were led by another member of the Supreme Privy Council, Vasily Lukich Dolgorukov, and they also carried a Marshal, Vasily Vladimirovich Dolgorukov. However, Marshal Vasily Vladimirovich was far less willing to cooperate with Vasily Lukich than Mikhail Mikhailovich was with Dmitry Mikhailovich. In general, Marshal Dolgorukov viewed the actions of his family as dangerous and edging on usurpation [1]. For that reason, Vasily Vladimirovich's far less renowned and less capable cousins, Alexey Grigorievich Dolgorukov and Sergei Grigorievich Dolgorukov were Vasily Lukich's main partners in the effort to install the Dolgorukovs as the right-hand men of Emperor Peter II.

The struggle between the Golitsyns and Dolgorukovs for power in Russia was quiet, quick, and harmless. Peter II did not appreciate the stiff arrogance of the Golitsyns. Even if the Golitsyns had a right to that trait from the family's long history at the center of Russian politics and success, Peter II did not care for it at all. Also, Peter II was inclined to think of the Golitsyns as willing collaborators of Menshikov. Dmitry Mikhailovich had done little to stop Menshikov's domestic programs, but in truth no one had. Meanwhile, Marshal Golitsyn had fought directly alongside Menshikov during Empress Catherine's War and his army had allowed Finland to be turned over the Holstein-Gottorps. Even though Marshal Dolgorukov was staying above this court feud, he still had the benefit of being left at home during the war and getting to avoid such an association with Menshikov. The rest of the Dolgorukovs were in simple terms more amenable to the tastes of Peter II than the Golitsyns. Rather than acting better than or more educated than Peter II, they pandered to him and flattered him. Additionally, Peter II's closest friend, Ivan Alekseevich Dolgorukov, played a large role in promoting the interests of his family by encouraging Peter II to favor his family over the Golitsyns. Thus, the sycophants beat out the revered [2].

Once accepted as among Peter II's closest advisers, the Dolgorukovs turned on Peter's closest adviser and governor, Andrei Osterman. At dinners with Peter II, the Dolgorukovs would take to mocking and belittling Osterman, even discrediting his diplomatic record. They pointed out how Osterman had lost Finland twice, once at Nystad and again at Vienna. They also called out that Osterman's direction of foreign policy meant that to this day, Russia was providing security for the Holstein-Gottorp rulers of Bremen-Verden and Finland while at the same time paying the King of Finland 50,000 pounds. To them, it seemed inconceivable that Russia should both guard Finland pay for the right to do so. Peter II joined in these jokes about Osterman and applauded these criticisms. However, whenever, Peter II dined with Osterman he mocked the Dolgorukovs and discussed their flaws [3]. These exchanges went to show how even though Peter II had let the Dolgorukovs take a step closer to power, he had no intention of giving himself and his power fully over to them. Peter II was the Emperor and Autocrat of All Russia and he understood that title carried with it an absolute power that was his to have. Still, Osterman did lose his influence over Peter II who had overgrown the German diplomat and his overbearance.

In an example of Peter II's independence from the Dolgorukovs and of anyone else, he stubbornly refused entreaties from the Dolgorukovs to break his marriage with Maria Menshikova. The Dolgorukovs had insisted that Maria was not at all fit to be the wife of an Emperor. Her father was of low birth even if he had an Imperial title and at that point, her father was a corrupt criminal. They argued that Peter II should get rid of the woman by having her tonsured. In her place, they offered up one of their own Ekaterina Alekseevna Dolgorukova. She was no prettier than Maria, no more intelligent, and only a year younger than her. In other words, there was nothing about Ekaterina to recommend her over Maria besides her last name [4]. For this reason, alone Peter II would have been justified in not abandoning his wife. However, the primary reason behind Peter II's obstinance was that he did not appreciate the Dolgorukovs interfering just like Menshikov had before them [5]. Menshikov's interference in the familial affairs of Peter II had been his downfall and Peter II made clear to the Dolgorukovs that if they kept pushing him that it would be their downfall as well. As Peter II put it, what was done was done and he would stay true to his word.

One area where the Dolgorukovs did succeed, with help from Prince Golitsyn, was in convincing Peter II to quit Saint Petersburg. They called Saint Petersburg a gangrenous limb that drew Russia away from itself and forced it to rely on the friendship of Finland and the strength of its navy to defend itself. However, again, Peter II's own opinion mattered most. Peter II himself also had a poor view of Saint Petersburg, which he viewed as a cramped and damp town. Saint Petersburg was a military camp that faced nasty saltwater on one side and cold countryside on the other in the mind of Peter II. For Peter II, Saint Petersburg was a desolate, isolated military outpost better suited for exile than a residence. Furthermore, Peter II found the forest of masts in the docks to be an abominable reminder of the great waste of money that was Russia's navy. For these reasons rather than those offered up by the Dolgorukovs and Prince Golitsyn, Peter II consented to leave Saint Petersburg and descend to Moscow. However, Peter II did not rush to change the official capital from Saint Petersburg to Moscow. As much of Peter II abhorred Saint Petersburg, Moscow was still very much foreign to him and wished to learn the city before electing it as his new capital [6].

As the court traveled from Saint Petersburg to Moscow, the Dolgorukovs tried to place a regent over Peter II by freeing Eudoxia Lopukhina from her convent and introducing her to her grandson. The plan did concern former supporters of Peter I who had all played their role in either tearing Eudoxia down or keeping her and her name suppressed. Even Osterman felt the need to write a letter to Eudoxia ensuring her of his support and calling out the Dolgorukovs as miscreants bent on taking advantage of her. In the end, Eudoxia was no threat at all to anyone. Her meeting with Peter II went poorly at best. Apparently, years sequestered to a convent with nothing to do but pray had allowed Eudoxia's wits to dull and her political savviness to evaporate. She had no plans to gain control over her grandson and of Russia nor would she have had the strength of mind necessary to master her grandson. In her meeting with Peter II, the two treated each other with all due respect but without the warmth that would be expected of grandmother and her grandson. They were strangers and for Peter II that was all they ever would be [7]. Afterward, Peter II moved on. He had a large pension of 60,000 rubles assigned to Eudoxia and sent her a few letters, but otherwise left her to the monasteries.

Upon reaching Moscow and getting to truly live it rather than just visit it as he had during his coronation, Peter II quickly fell in love with the city. Moscow was a sprawling city with much more interesting and gentle architecture than Saint Petersburg. It was a city that was alive and vibrant in contrast to the working nature of Saint Petersburg. Surrounding all sides of the city were beautiful plains and forests that were filled with game to hurt. And in general, the climate of the city was far more pleasant than that of the bog of Saint Petersburg [8]. The first weeks saw Peter II forget about Saint Petersburg entirely as he took to hunting, riding, and hawking each day. He did not even bother attending any of Osterman's lectures anymore, which turned Osterman's title of governor into a symbolic position. Peter II also failed to visit a single meeting of the Supreme Privy Council nor go to Osterman's office to discuss foreign affairs during their first weeks. It was not until Osterman brought Saint Petersburg back up by asking when Peter II intended on returning that the boy revealed he never would. Afterward, he banned the mention of Saint Petersburg in his presence and gave approval for the State Ministries, Archives, and Mint to all be moved from Saint Petersburg to Moscow. These orders in effect restored Moscow to its place as Russia's capital and saw hundreds of courtiers and their servants return to Moscow.

For a time being this proved to be the only act of governance that Peter II took. In many ways, the new Emperor was like his grandfather. Peter II was a stubborn autocrat who did not stand for opposition nor criticism of himself. He would not change his mind even if even was proven wrong and was especially annoyed by lengthy, time-consuming debates. Besides those traits, Peter II was exceptionally tall and very strong for his age. He had a good face and quickly developing muscles. In these ways, Peter II was similar to his grandfather. Unfortunately, unlike his grandfather, Peter II did not have the drive to govern. He was allowed to and enjoyed spending all his time on recreation rather than on studying and involving himself in the government. He was reserved to the point of being unreachable at times, which prevented his courtiers from getting to know him and his officials from getting him to govern. Even though Peter II disdained heavy drinking and preferred to be up early, the time he saved from partying and sleeping was just spent on other recreations that were equally wasteful. He run around all day from one activity to the next but rarely stopped to do the one activity that his country needed him to do most, govern. And because Peter II was a stubborn tyrant, he also disdained the idea of letting someone govern in his place, even his Dolgorukov friends [9].

The only one who was allowed to govern in any real way was Osterman. Peter II still trusted Osterman despite breaking free of Osterman's paternal influence. For Peter II, Osterman remained a man who could be trusted to oversee Russian foreign affairs. Osterman's sin had been interfering in Peter II's personal life, not in mismanaging Russia's foreign relations. For this reason, Russia continued its alliance with the Hapsburgs and Prussia while Osterman authorized the distribution of funds in Stockholm to create a Riksdag more friendly toward Russia. However, Peter II did make a major interruption in Osterman's continuation of Peter I's Baltic Diplomacy. In regards to the Holstein-Gottorps, Peter II ordered those relations be severed. Charles Augustus of Bremen-Verden and Charles Frederick of Finland should be viewed as rivals, not allies of Russia [10]. On that same note, Peter II ordered the termination of the annual payments to Charles Frederick of 50,000 pounds. Although Osterman had desperately tried to dissuade Peter II from this course of action, Peter II forced Osterman to go through it. In turn, Charles Frederick denied the Russian army its passports in Finland and demanded that the Russian army to evacuate from Finland. Osterman feared that Peter II might retaliate by ordering the Russian army to stand their ground and conquer Finland, but Peter II did not seem disposed to such action. Instead, Peter II merely stripped Charles Frederick of his place on the Supreme Privy Council and awarded it to Marshal Dolgorukov. For Peter II, leaving Finland to fend for itself and humiliating Charles Frederick was enough, war was unnecessary. This rupture in Russo-Finnish relations saw the court at Turku become a welcome refuge for any generals or officials who found themselves displaced from Russia's court or the favor of the Emperor. Additionally, to promote the protection of the Holstein-Gottorp rulers, Charles Augustus traveled to Muhlburg to negotiate with both the Prussians and Saxons for alliances and guarantees of security. Thus, the Holstein-Gottorps seemed to hedge on both linkages to Russia and security from Germany.

In other places, Peter II made no impact on Osterman's policy. Peter II did not discuss the Russo-Mecklenburg-Schwerin relationship with Osterman nor did he try to establish a Russian alliance with Brunswick-Wolfenbuttel, which was now ruled by his maternal grandfather, Ludwig Rudolf. However, Peter II did mess with Osterman's diplomatic strategy severely when he wrote a personal letter to King Friedrich Wilhelm in Prussia over the treatment of his son, Prince Friedrich. Recalling the stories of his own father and his death at the hands of Peter I, the youthful Peter II admonished Friedrich Wilhelm for imprisoning his son and called out Friedrich Wilhelm for the public beatings that he had given to the crown prince at Muhlberg. Despite being many years younger than Friedrich Wilhelm and having no children of his own yet, Peter II called Friedrich Wilhelm out as an abusive tyrant who had no business treating his children in such a fashion and even hinted that the whole affair was Friedrich Wilhelm's fault. Also, within this letter Peter II seemingly derided Friedrich Wilhelm's royal title while emphasizing his own.

Naturally, Friedrich Wilhelm was furious at this invective letter and wrote one back of his own that ridiculed Peter II as a foolish boy who did nothing but hunt and allowed his country to waste away. Whereas before Friedrich Wilhelm had stood in awe and fear of Russia under Peter I and Menshikov, now Friedrich Wilhelm saw Peter II's Russia as a paper bear. Russia might have an army twice the size of Prussia's but Friedrich Wilhelm doubted that Peter II could defeat Prussia with ten times its soldiers. The barbs and insults that Friedrich Wilhelm had thrown back at Peter II proved to be too much for the boy who in his cruel and indicative nature ordered the Prussian ambassador, Axel von Mardefeld, to be thrown out of Russia immediately. Only at this point did Osterman become aware of all that transpired and quickly went to work trying to amend Peter II's transgression. Through great difficulty and not without begging from Peter II's sister, Natalya, Peter II agreed to retract his order for Mardefeld's expulsion. Although Peter II refused to apologize to Friedrich Wilhelm, Osterman did hesitate to humble himself in letters to Friedrich Wilhelm. Through a series of letters, Osterman ensured that the Prusso-Russian alliance remained officially intact, but at the same time, Osterman knew that politics was as much personal as it was national. Friedrich Wilhelm and Peter II did not like each other nor did they trust each other and if Russian and Prussia found themselves fighting alongside each other then their personal grievances with one another would rise again and complicate matters.

When Osterman was not involved, domestic and military affairs, he could do nothing to remedy the misfortunes of Peter II's misgovernance. Regarding the navy and army, Peter II damaged both of them by refusing to approve their continued bloated budgets. Peter II told the Supreme Privy Council to cut costs and left them to figure out how. For the navy, this meant that hundreds of sailors were left without work as their ships were laid up in Saint Petersburg and left to rot. Less than half a decade had passed since the Russians had held the British at Osel and beat them at Kymmenedalen, yet now their active navy numbered just a few ships and of those, the only ships-of-the-line were the British ones. These ones were saved from an inglorious and slow death in the docks through the sheer will and perseverance of the Russian Admiralty that sacrificed everything to hold on to their British prizes. The army too decayed as thousands of soldiers were released from service because Peter II saw no point in approving an army of more than 200,000 for a country at peace [11].

Only through the individual action of certain commanders were key elements of the Russian army kept together. Through his position as a Major General and the Governor-General of Estland, Peter Lacy his influence to prevent his army of 30,000 elite Russian veterans from being broken up. For a decade, this army had been Russia's first army always ready to strike against any threat that arose in the Baltic and had Russia lost it then it would have seen its capabilities in the Baltic decline. On the other end of the empire, Major General Vasily Yakovlevich Levashov did the same to hold on to his garrison of 30,000 men for the Caspian and Caucasus region. Whereas Peter Lacy's army got to act as an army-in-being for the most part, Levashov's army was an army-at-war in everything but name. Daily, Levashov's soldiers had to deal with a restless population and the potential of attacks from the Ottomans or the resurgent Persians under an Afghan by the name of Nader. Had Levashov lost his army then Russia would have been forced to concede the Caspian coast. Honestly, several in Russia were inclined toward that idea but Osterman was too busy with other affairs and the rest were too disinterested to actually act on the thought of returning the Caspian provinces to Persia. Altogether, Russia was in the midst of one of the most dramatic and sudden declines in history for its military and even diplomatic reach due to Peter II's reluctance to govern and even greater reluctance to let someone govern in his place.

The plot to detach Peter II and Maria Menshikov came to an end when Maria became pregnant in mid-1731. At that point, Peter II began to show genuine interest and warmth toward her. The shows of public affection that followed the news of Maria's pregnancy made it clear that Peter II would no longer oppose a divorce merely on the grounds of hating interference in his life. At the same time, people feared that the pregnancy might mean the return of Menshikov to power. However, Peter II made it clear that Menshikov was unwelcome at court when he refused to grant Menshikov permission to come to Moscow and celebrate Maria's pregnancy. Peter II went further by telling Menshikov that he would also not be permitted to attend the child's birth and if he did then he would be punished for it. Given that Peter II was most likely unavailable as a husband for Ekaterina, the Dolgorukovs switched their plan from marrying Peter II and Ekaterina to wedding Peter's sister, Natalya, to Ivan Alekseevich Dolgorukov.

In general, the question of Natalya's future loomed large over Russia once the court had finished settling down at Moscow and Maria had proven herself fertile enough to grow pregnant. From across Europe, Osterman received requests for Natalya's hand. The Saxons, Bavarians, British, Parmese, and even Prussians all sought the hand of Natalya despite her being older than the prospective husbands. Augustus II requested Natalya's marriage to his grandson, Joseph Augustus, with the idea of shoring up the promised Russian support for a Wettin succession to Poland. Charles Albert of Bavaria offered his nephew Maximilian Joseph Franz with the hopes of turning Peter II's Russia away from the Hapsburgs to permit a Wittelsbach succession to the title of Holy Roman Emperor. George II and Caroline still disdainful of their exiled son, Prince Frederick, asked if Natalya would marry their younger son, William Augustus. Sophia Dorothea, the regent of Parma, and Elizabeth Farnese, Queen of Spain, investigated the possibility of Duke Carlo of Parma replacing the Archduchess that the Hapsburgs had denied him with a Tsarevna. Finally, Friedrich Wilhelm considered the possibility of marrying his second son August Wilhelm to Natalya to give August Wilhelm a prestigious marriage and connection to the Emperors of Russia and the Holy Roman Empire in case Fritz embarrassed Friedrich Wilhelm again.

None of these international and foreign marriages suited Peter II as he had no desire to part with Natalya. Although he wanted a good marriage for Natalya, he also wanted her to remain in Russia [12]. For this reason, the Saxon, British, Parmese, and Prussian schemes all fell through. The Bavarian scheme, however, continued because Charles Albert and his brother, Ferdinand Maria Innocenz, were both willing to send Maximilian Joseph Franz to Russia if it meant making him the husband of the Tsarevna. On a similar note, this requirement from Peter II opened up the possibility for a lesser European prince but prestigious one nonetheless, the Duke of Brunswick-Wolfenbuttel to offer his grandson, Anton Ulrich of Brunswick-Wolfenbuttel, who would willing to migrate to Russia to marry Natalya. However, Peter II rejected this marriage on account of Anton Ulrich and Natalya being cousins. However, close relations had not stopped Peter II from previously pining for his aunt Duchess Elizabeth of Bremen-Verden. Thus, the only marriage that remained was the Bavarian one until a message from Vienna came presenting Infante Manuel of Portugal as another option. Infante Manuel was the brother of King Joao V of Portugal and cousin of Emperor Charles VI and thus would have been a prestigious match for Natalya. However, the Hapsburgs were not willing to part with Manuel permanently as they plans for the prince and on this note, Peter II refused the Portuguese match.

Up against only this Bavarian match, the Dolgorukovs felt that they had a chance to put forth Ivan as an alternative. Despite Marshal Dolgorukov calling out the plan as dangerous folly that treaded on the same path that Menshikov had trodden before, Vasily Lukich pushed forward and submitted the idea to Peter II. Surprisingly, Peter II did not reject the offer of a subject to marry a Tsarevna immediately. These marriages in past had rarely been allowed and instead, Tsarevnas were more often sent to convents than wed to subjects. However, the marriage of a Tsarevna to a subject was not entirely unheard of in recent times. Tsarevna Praskovya Ivanovna, daughter of Ivan V, had married Ivan Ilyich Dmitriev-Mamonov, a Russian general, and they even had a son, Pyotr. Still, a marriage of a Tsarevna and a subject was uncommon and typically unwelcome. Yet Peter II did not approach it in that fashion and refused that same argument when Alexey Dmitrievich tried to oppose the marriage on such terms. Instead, Peter II allowed himself to be worked over by Vasily Lukich and the goom, Ivan Alekseevich, slowly but surely. Natalya also failed to oppose the marriage because she knew Ivan Alekseevish and did not find him completely reprehensible. Ivan Alekseevich was a silly man but a kind one, he would treat Natalya well. Furthermore, through marriage to Peter's best friend, Natalya might regain the influence that she had steadily lost with her brother. Through the marriage, she thought she could help right the ship of the Russian state that currently was adrift without a pilot. Ultimately, Peter II's own affection for Ivan Alekseevich and Natalya's willingness to accept him allowed for their engagement to be contracted in late 1731. This action brought Peter II the disdain of the Golitsyns. However, Peter II cared little for their approval, and even as an absent ruler he remained unchallenged in his power. However, as an absent and unchallenged ruler, Peter II was allowing Russia to stagnate in some areas and decline in others. In no place, did Russia advance.

[1] Marshal Dolgorukov is often described as a sober and practical man who refused to join in on his family's plots to marry Peter II to one of their own in OTL. In TTL, this same personality will see Marshal Dolgorukov avoid getting mixed up in his family's schemes.
[2] In OTL, Peter II favored the Dolgorukovs over the Golitsyns for what seems to be personal preference. The same preference leads to the same decision in TTL.
[3] This exact behavior was recorded of Peter II in OTL.
[4] In OTL, it is hypothesized that Peter II only married Ekaterina because he had an affair with her and felt honor-bound to marry her, because in the lead up to the marriage he showed Ekaterina even less regard and respect than he had shown to Maria Menshikova during their engagement.
[5] The main reason that Peter II says no has nothing to do with his loyalty toward Maria and everything to do with his disdain for interference in his life.
[6] Peter II's distaste for Saint Petersburg is taken from OTL. Also in OTL, he was initially taken to Moscow for his coronation and just stayed there. In TTL, he has already been coronated so the Dolgorukovs use a more direct argument but still succeed due to Peter II's hate for Saint Petersburg.
[7] In OTL, plots to get Peter II to reconnect with grandmother went no more due to his apathy toward her.
[8] These are the same attributes that made Peter II fall in love with Moscow in OTL.
[9] This personality for Peter II is taken from OTL because Peter II's childhood was not dramatically different and certainly not different enough to make major divergences in his personality.
[10] In OTL, Peter II did not pursue such actions against the Holstein-Gottorps but I see him doing so in TTL for two reasons. First, Russia has done a lot for the Holstein-Gottorps in TTL, which makes all the extra help they are giving to the Holstein-Gottorps in TTL much more distasteful than in OTL. Second, Charles Augustus took Elizabeth away, a woman who it seems like Peter II was seriously infatuated with in OTL. Thus, Peter II is taking his revenge on the Holstein-Gottorps for taking away Elizabeth and also feels that is unfair to be giving so much support to the Holstein-Gottorps after making one of them a king.
[11] In OTL, Peter II's reign saw a similar degradation of the Russian armed forces because he disdained his grandfather's navy and bloated army.
[12] Peter II seemed to be dependent on his sister in many ways, so I can see him parting with her.

Word Count: 4466

 

[Archduke]

34: Resilience of Raynham

Charles Townshend, 2nd Viscount Townshend​

Many in Britain were never comfortable with the Anglo-French alliance that James Stanhope negotiated in 1716 as a member of Viscount Charles Townshend's ministry. The issue was not the terms of the alliance but the idea of the alliance itself. Certainly, many realized that the French were for the time being weak, insecure, and pliable. Meanwhile, as Townshend pointed out the Hapsburgs were using their triumphs over the Ottomans and French to act domineering and abusive within Europe's politics. However, the new alliance ran counter to decades of repetitive war with Louis XIV's France from 1678 until 1714 and decades of intermittent alliance with the Hapsburgs. As it stood, the British were distrustful of France, even if that was France lacking Europe's would-be hegemon, Louis XIV, and commanded by a number of more pacifistic men. Still, when Townshend's ministry was usurped in 1717 it was replaced by one dominated by James Stanhope, so the leading Whigs continues to hold to their French alliance. This commitment was rewarded with a victory over Spain but all the while the Hapsburgs grew stronger, which seemed to lend credence to Stanhope's alliance and Townshend's fears and so the alliance shakily continued on.

In 1725, the alliance reached its zenith when it grew to include Prussia while a proclaimed lover of peace, Cardinal Fleury, became the primary minister in France. At the same time, France broke off its alliance with Spain and seemed forced to tighten its bonds with Britain. But just two years later when Spain attacked Britain, France refused to back Britain up, and immediately accusations of treachery and betrayal began to fly. When Britain asked for soldiers and ships, France offers diplomats. Fleury's love for peace was no longer as appealing as it once was for Britain. Only when the Russians came after Britain too did the French allow themselves to be forced into war. Even then the French only mustered a meager army to stumble through Spain ineffectually and a toothless army to be ejected from the Rhine, which left the British army to be mauled by the Russians on its lonesome. By the war's end, Townshend's vision of antagonistic Hapsburgs was validated as the Hapsburgs and Russians redesigned northern Germany to the detriment of Britain and Brunswick-Luneburg. However, Stanhope's French alliance, now championed by Horatio Walpole, had failed to demonstrate its worth [1]. One issue of particular note was the lack of any French fleet actions to support British operations in either the Baltic or at Gibraltar.

This less than pleasant experience left many doubtful of France's alliance but Sir Robert Walpole promised that the alliance was still to Britain's benefit [2]. The reasoning now was that Britain's new friend Spain, who every single man in Britain cherished the trade of, was a tighter friend of their Bourbon relatives in France. If Britain wanted to maintain its alliance with Spain and preserve its trade with Spain then Britain needed to also maintain its alliance with France. Many in the British parliament disagreed with that opinion and thought that Britain could form its own relationship with Spain without depending on France. These British politicians never got the chance to prove their point because Fleury's France did it for them. When the Hapsburgs violated the terms of the Treaty of the Quadruple Alliance and the Treaty of Madrid, the French once again refused to offer their army or navy to preserve the legality of two treaties they were signatories to, the latter of which required that France enforce its terms with force if necessary. Instead, France tried to talk its way out of the situation, which included talking more to the enemy than to its supposed allies in Britain and Spain. Ultimately, Britain's army and navy alongside Spain's army were able to coerce the Hapsburgs into accepting the terms of Madrid without France's help. In fact, Britain and Spain found success despite French efforts to sabotage the two. In the end, Spain seemed resolved to improve its relationship with Britain further and focus on its alliance with Britain rather than France.

The latest episode of French bystanding led to a powerful Opposition attack on the French alliance in 1731. In February 1731 as the Parliament opened, the Tory leader, Sir William Wyndham, delivered a salvo against Walpole and Townshend's ministry and their French alliance. In particular, Wyndham called out the ongoing French restoration of Dunkirk's harbor. In 1725, 1727, 1728, 1729, and 1730, the French had done restoration work on Dunkirk in clear violation of the Treaty of Utrecht and the Treaty of the Hague (1717). This restoration would allow Dunkirk to hold large ships, including warships. Previously, Wyndham and others had attacked the French rebuilding of Dunkirk and the ministry's failure to stop it, but in 1731, Wyndham went so far as to describe Walpole's actions as failing to protect national interests. Thus, Wyndham called for a full examination of the state of the nation, which Britain had not undergone since 1714 when the Hanoverians came to power. Wyndham's powerful and loud speech led to chaos in Parliament as supporters of the government and opposition loudly shouted over one another. The ministry was barely able to lay out any of their evidence against the threat of the restoration. All they did get across was Horatio Walpole's report that the port had become accessible due to the tides and unauthorized labor, which the opposition called out as ludicrous. The following day, Wyndham also submitted a bill asking George II to release all the diplomatic correspondence on Dunkirk. Walpole was only able to secure a two-week hiatus until the bill would be debated [3].

The seriousness of the Dunkirk debate cannot be understated. During the opening talks of the issue, many members of the government had failed to raise their voices against Wyndham because they shared his opinion. The greatest evidence of the threat faced by Walpole's ministry was that the government was defeated on a smaller, domestic bill shortly after the Dunkirk issue was raised. The reason for the defeat was that hundreds of government members of parliament had abstained from the vote and some had even voted against the government. This defeat immediately caused speculation that the government was teetering on collapse and that the government would not be able to survive the Dunkirk disclosure debate. Even Walpole feared his government was nearing its end so he and the Secretary for the Southern Department, Thomas Pelham-Holles, Duke of Newcastle, put John Armstrong, British military representative to France, under incredible pressure to get something done about Dunkirk. Armstrong went to Fleury directly and secured the official assurance that any and all work on Dunkirk had been done without the proper authorization and that King Louis XV was ordering the demolition of these unauthorized improvements [4].

This official assurance was presented to Parliament when the Dunkirk debate resumed. However, Wyndham was quick to point out the unlikelihood of the government of France failing to notice unauthorized work on Dunkirk for six years. Furthermore, Wyndham delivered evidence of even newer additions to Dunkirk in contrast to Fleury's assurances. This argument and that evidence proved to be insufficient as the Dunkirk disclosure bill was voted down and a counter-legislation to formally thank His Majesty for providing for national security in the case of Dunkirk was passed instead. The vote was not as clean as Walpole would have liked being only 259 to 154 [5]. For the second time in recent times, the opposition secured more than 150 votes while Walpole's majority was barely over a hundred. Still, the vote was enough of victory for Walpole and his allies Newcastle and Charles Delafaye to act as if the crisis was over. Indeed, it was. A subsequent opposition attack against France and the government over Britain and France's disputed ownership of Saint Lucia failed to make much headway [6]. Still, the government majority was hovering just above a hundred at 105, which left the opposition thinking that they could threaten the government.

After failing to find a victory over the Anglo-French alliance, the Opposition tried to move against the Anglo-Spanish alliance. William Pulteney led this attack by pointing out numerous failures of Spain to fulfill or abide by the terms of the Treaty of Madrid. The Spanish guardacostas were still capturing British merchant ships and Spain had yet to pay for all the damages and stalled payments from Empress Catherine's War. The bill through which Pulteney chose to make his fight was through a demand for the disclosure of all secret articles of the Treaty of Madrid and all correspondence between the government and the negotiators of the Treaty of Madrid. Pulteney was hoping to find anything amongst those papers that could be used to claim negligence or corruption on the part of Walpole. However, Pulteney did not even get the chance to look at the papers as Walpole was able to throw off this attack with a vote of 186 to 80 [7]. Again, the majority was small but the opposition vote was even smaller, so in a way, this was the strongest government victory of the session yet.

This was not the last challenge to the government's foreign policy. After the opposition could not overcome the government's alliance, it chose to attack the government over one of Brunswick-Luneburg's alliances. Since 1726, Brunswick-Luneburg had been in a contract with Hesse-Kassel for the right to first hire on 12,000 Hessian soldiers. This retainer of 125,000 pounds was funded not by Brunswick-Luneburg but by Britain. For this reason, the contract was made a British issue and was attacked in 1727 as using British funds to pay for Brunswick-Luneburg's security. During that vote, Walpole defeated the opposition 191 to 98. Since 1727, the contract had gone without significant attacks because the contract was in an active state between 1727 and 1729. Then in early 1730, the prospect of war with the Holy Roman Emperor over Italian affairs rather than German ones prevented the opposition from criticizing Britain's right to hire 12,000 soldiers that might be able to threaten the Holy Roman Emperor and could serve as substitutes for 12,000 British soldiers defending Brunswick-Luneburg against the Emperor.

In 1731 with no war on the horizon, the issue of the Hessian contract became a subject of government debate again. The Opposition attacked the Hessian contract from a number of angles. One attack claimed that the contract meant an outflow of British gold to Hesse-Kassel that was not balanced out through trade, especially because the retainer was now twice the price it was in 1726, nearing 250,000 pounds [8]. Given the debts faced by Britain from Empress Catherine's War, this outflow could not be tolerated. One MP even calculated the Hessian contract as being one-fourth of the pound in the land tax. Another angle of attack was provided by William Shippen, an outright Jacobite MP, who claimed that the Hessian contract served only to defend George II's foreign dominions and not to defend Britain or any of its allies. George Heathcote took this angle a few steps further in a speech that reminded Parliament that George II's succession was based on a contract, the Ace of Succession, by which George II had consented that Britain would not have to provide undue funds for Brunswick-Luneburg's defense. The Hessian contract represented a violation of the succession contract and thus if George II supported the Hessian contract then his rights to the throne were canceled out. Robert Vyner added this argument by saying that a vote for the Hessian contract was an act of treason against Britain and its people [9].

The ministry tried to defend this contract on the terms that the Hessians were not meant to defend Brunswick-Luneburg but instead to defend the Dutch Republic. The Dutch Republic's Barrier Fortresses served as a defense against France but its eastern perimeter remained exposed to the Emperor and the Prussians. The Hessians provided for the security of that eastern perimeter. Without this security, the Dutch Republic would have no choice but to subject itself to the tyranny of the Emperor and the Prussians. To this, Viscount Perceval, a usual support of the government, inquired whether or not the actions of the Hessian mercenaries during Empress Catherine's War constituted the defense of the Dutch Republic or the Electorate of Brunswick-Luneburg. Walpole's response was to ask if the Dutch Republic had ever been attacked during Empress Catherine's War. When his supporters cried out no, Walpole continued by saying then there is the answer. The defense of Brunswick-Luneburg is the defense of the Dutch Republic [10]. For a second, Walpole thought he had won but then the opposition began to ask for the disclosure of British instructions to the Hessian mercenaries during Empress Catherine's War. When Walpole hesitated, William Wyndham asked if there were instructions at all or had the orders for the Hessian mercenaries come from Brunswick-Luneburg instead. Once more Walpole had to retreat and ask for a delay in the debate. Even if Walpole had not been a part of the government during Empress Catherine's War, he already knew that Wyndham's guess was correct and that any disclosure of orders would have shown no regard for the Dutch Republic. Additionally, Walpole knew that even if he had not been the one to allow such illegal orders to be written that it would be his government that fell because of it.

During the break between debates, the tensions between Walpole and Townshend came to a scolding boil after four years of simmering. For the past four years, Walpole and Townshend's relationship had been in a poor state. When George I died and Walpole still thought he had some chance of retaining his control over the government he had thought of replacing Townshend. The Viscount repaid Walpole's uncertainty over Townshend's place in his government by failing to protect Walpole from falling out of government. Townshend proceeded to join Spencer Compton's government in what Walpole viewed as an obvious betrayal. Only Compton's obvious inadequacies led to Townshend and Walpole making a half-reconciliation as they figured the two of them were better off working together than letting someone like Compton lead Britain's government. That functional relationship ultimately led to Townshend and Walpole collaborating to achieve approval of the Treaty of Vienna and then Walpole's return to his post as First Lord of the Treasury.

Since the beginning of the second Walpole-Townshend ministry, Walpole found Townshend acting even more independently than he had under their previous joint ministry. Townshend's independent foreign policy, personal conversations with George II, and private communications with British diplomats made Walpole feel cut out of the Northern Department's policies. Walpole in turn encouraged the Secretary for the Southern Department, Newcastle, to act independently of Townshend. Despite Townshend being widely recognized as the senior Secretary of State, Newcastle acted without consulting him and even conducted his own private communications with diplomats in his office. Townshend responded by interfering in Newcastle's policies and sending secret messages to ministers and ambassadors within Newcastle's office without Newcastle's approval or knowledge. When Newcastle found out he tried to make an issue of it, but George II backed Townshend on the issue and revealed to Walpole that he had approved Townshend's actions in advance. Thus, it became apparent that Townshend had used his own more direct connection to George II to usurp Newcastle's responsibilities.

These previous clashes combined with Townshend's ongoing demands that Newcastle be replaced by one of Townshend's men, Philip Stanhope, 4th Earl of Chesterfield, or Sir Paul Methuen led to a heated exchange when the ministry met to discuss the Hessian contract. Walpole tried to place the place firmly on Townshend for allowing George II to use the Hessians as mercenaries for Brunswick-Luneburg rather than for Britain. Townshend refused this charge and pointed out that military strategy was not part of his jurisdiction. This mention of jurisdiction led to Walpole attacking Townshend for infringing on the Southern Department's jurisdiction. Townshend's defense was that Newcastle was not fit for the position as could be seen by the fact that he had retained control of the Southern Department under Compton and had failed remarkably to motivate significant French military action. Newcastle's own defense tried to cast blame on Horatio Walpole, which irritated Sir Robert Walpole. Even if Walpole disagreed with his brother's unwavering support for the French alliance, Sir Walpole would not see his brother scapegoated. The meeting shortly afterward with everyone's relationships frayed [11].

When the day came for the debate, Walpole did his best to defend the government's policy and the Hessian contract because he understand if the bill failed that either parliament would depose him or the King would. Ultimately, despite the opposition efforts, the contract was renewed but only by a vote of 222 to 174, this was the smallest majority that Walpole had yet seen on a major piece of legislation. The bill on the vote to disclose the orders distributed to the Hessian mercenaries was defeated by the government with an even smaller majority of just 209 to 178 [12]. Many foreign ambassadors and domestic critics called these votes the beginning of the end of Walpole's return to government. These assertions did not end up proving true as Walpole's majority rebounded on some later pieces of legislation. However, the two votes combined with earlier ones cast serious doubt on Walpole's supremacy and led to George II making two significant changes to Walpole's government. First, George II dismissed John Campbell, 2nd Duke of Argyll, as the Master-General of the Ordnance, which in essence made him the scapegoat for any misuse of the Hessian mercenaries. In his place, George II chose someone who was entirely removed from the war, John Montagu, 2nd Duke of Montagu. The promotion was in some ways meant to compensate Montagu for failing to support his attempts to colonize Saint Lucia. The second change was that George II asked Newcastle to resign. The duke complied with His Majesty's request and in his place, George II told Walpole to pick between Chesterfield and Methuen, Townshend's nominees. Walpole selected Methuen because he knew that Chesterfield was closer to Townshend. Still, it was obvious that Methuen would pay his homage to Townshend rather than Walpole, which indicated that the government in the future would see a more balanced share of power between Walpole and Townshend [13].

The debate over the Hessian contracts was the last major, formal Opposition challenge over foreign policy. Despite how close the Opposition how come to knocking down Walpole's reign, they lacked any issues as significant or as close to home as Dunkirk and the Hessian contract. The fact that the government had not fallen on the Hessian contract meant that the Opposition had no better arguments with which to attack the government. When the escape of Fritz occurred just a few weeks later and the British government was implicated, the Opposition chose against making an issue of it. Instead, what they chose to discuss was the missing Prince of Wales. For the Opposition, this was not a challenge designed at overturning government but rather just giving them an avenue of criticism to occupy themselves and also a way to show their support for the Prince of Wales ahead of what they thought to be his inevitable arrival in Britain. Once he did arrive the Opposition hoped that debates like these would make him a champion of their causes. If anything this debate was fought more between the Opposition and Crown than between the Opposition and Walpole. In the end, George II ended the debate by promising to bring his son to Britain after his next trip to Brunswick-Luneburg. This promise both provided a satisfactory answer to the Opposition's beckons for the Prince of Wales and forced the Parliament to swallow the idea of George II returning to Brunswick-Luneburg in 1732. Further talks about whether George II had any intention to find a wife for the Prince of Wales and ensure the continuance of Britain's royal family were quieted by George II's requests to delay such talk until the Prince was in England.

After months of repetitive attacks against the government and its policies, it was finally handed a clear victory when Archbishop Leopold Anton von Firmian of Salzburg issued an order for the 20,000 secret Protestant residents of his bishopric to leave their homes. This attack on Protestantism by an Imperial Prince-Bishop was not only allowed or approved by the Holy Roman Emperor but it was enforced by 6,000 of his soldiers who marched into Salzburg to impose the will of the Archbishop and champion the Counter-Reformation. Or at least that is how the British press and Townshend painted the incident. The fact that Emperor Charles VI had felt that the Archbishop had gone too far and that those soldiers were meant not just to discipline the Protestants but also the Archbishop went unnoticed. The fact that Charles VI later forced the Archbishop to amend the terms of that expulsion so that the Protestant families could leave with their movable property, sell their immovable property, and take their children with them also went unnoticed. Instead, the eyes of Britain focused on the fact that thousands of landless Protestants had already been evicted and that thousands more were being given just 8 days to leave rather than the 3 years accorded to them by the Peace of Westphalia. To Britain, this event was viewed as a clear violation of the Peace of Westphalia and a violation that the Hapsburgs not only failed to stop as was their duty under the Peace of Westphalia but also one that they took a part in. In an address to Parliament, Paul Methuen, as a mouthpiece for Townshend, described what had happened in Salzburg as a practical declaration of war against the Protestant world including Britain and Brunswick-Luneburg by the Hapsburg tyrants of Vienna. Methuen condemned the Hapsburg actions as being the start of a second wave of the Counter-Reformation that would see all of Europe subjugated to their malevolent Catholic oppression. Methuen pointed to Electoral Palatinate and the impending Catholic succession in Wurttemberg as examples of this Hapsburg plot. This address was received with roaring applause from hundreds of members of Parliament [14]. On this happy note, Walpole concluded 1731's parliamentary meetings.

[1] Horatio Walpole as the British ambassador to France became the main advocate of the Anglo-French alliance after James Stanhope's death.
[2] Despite claims that Robert Walpole wanted to switch to an Austrian alliance for years, there is minimal evidence that Robert Walpole took any action to that effect. Instead, Robert Walpole defended the French alliance in parliamentary sessions in OTL.
[3] This Tory attack on the government over the Dunkirk restoration is based on an OTL attack. In TTL, this attack is delayed because of the war making parliament more willing to turn a blind eye to French military actions.
[4] In OTL, the French bent as soon as the British applied serious pressure. In TTL, I see the French similarly being unwilling to blatantly defy their British allies on a matter of national security.
[5] The opposition vote fairs better than OTL because Walpole is not viewed as invincible like he was in OTL. He has also lost power to Compton, which has shaken confidence in his leadership. Additionally, parliament, in general, is warier of government policies after the disasters of the war.
[6] Saint Lucia is not a critical issue for most of the parliament so it does not become a major platform to criticize the government.
[7] As it stands, Spain's demonstrated military might combined with the value of its trade are going to prevent efforts to disrupt that alliance.
[8] In OTL, the Hessian contract doubled in price for reasons I am unsure of. I have kept that price doubling in TTL, because I do not see any reason why the Hessians would not be able to force George II to accept a more expensive contract.
[9] These types of arguments were used in OTL to attack the Hessian contracts.
[10] In OTL, this is the argument that the government used to defend the Hessian contract.
[11] In OTL, Townshend and Walpole began to clash under George II. Walpole was letting Newcastle act independently and Townshend wanted to replace Newcastle. During this dispute, Townshend often had the support of George II but Townshend ultimately resigned due to health issues. In TTL, Townshend avoided his 1727 illness and is thus able to defend his political power more energetically. The dispute between Walpole and Townshend still breaks out and in much the same way as OTL, but it does not end with Townshend just giving up.
[12] These majorities are very narrow because the Hessian contracts have become national security/succession contract issues much more so than in OTL. The fact that the Hessian contract has actually been activated and that the Hessians were seen defending Brunswick-Luneburg very clearly makes the Hessian contract a lot harder to defend under false pretenses. The only reason that the Hessian contract is still approved is because of George II's strong preference toward the Hessian contract.
[13] These narrow majorities are close to a government defeat and do force a slight shake-up in the government similar to how Walpole's defeat over the Excise issue in OTL forced a shakeup. The TTL shakeup is smaller because the scale of defeat is less.
[14] The Salzburg expulsion still occurs in TTL because its root causes are unaffected by the changes in Europe and in TTL it is a much bigger issue in Britain because the Hapsburgs are still an enemy rather than an ally. Thus, instead of the government playing damage control, they are using the expulsion as a springboard for an attack on the Hapsburgs. This will produce a worse British opinion of the Hapsburgs.

Word Count: 4308

 

[Archduke]

35: The Polish Succession

Augustus II, King of Poland, Grand Duke of Lithuania, and Elector of Saxony​

When Empress Catherine's War was winding down and its leaders Russia and the Holy Roman Emperor were trying to forge a peace with Britain and France, King Augustus II "the Strong" of Poland demanded that his contribution to the Viennese Alliance's success be compensated with the entirety of Brunswick-Luneburg. This demand was obviously extreme, but it also made it clear to the Russian and Hapsburg governments that Augustus II wanted a significant reward for his role in the war. Augustus II was certainly entitled to one as more than a third of the army that fought the war's primary battles in Brunswick-Luneburg had been Augustus II's army and of the army that occupied the Electorate after its conquest, almost all of it was Augustus II's Saxon soldiers. Augustus II had given the Viennese Alliance his whole army and he was looking for just recompense. Of course, Augustus II could not possibly receive all of Brunswick-Luneburg because the territory was too large to be considered equivalent to Augustus II's efforts and also because Brunswick-Luneburg encapsulated an Electorate. No Emperor, not even one as adventurous as Holy Roman Emperor Charles VI had considered allowing a single man to hold multiple electorates since the times of Emperor Sigismund, and if Augustus II was given Brunswick-Luneburg then he would have both its vote and Saxony's vote in his hands. In other words, Augustus II would become in political terms the second most important individual in the Holy Roman Empire.

But again, Augustus II could not possibly have thought that receiving all of Brunswick-Luneburg was within reach. However, to the Imperial representative who Augustus II communicated that demand, Friedrich Heinrich von Seckendorff, it seemed quite plausible that Augustus II would demand all of the technically non-Electoral portions of Brunswick-Luneburg including the massive expanse of the Principality of Celle. Since Celle had come into Brunswick-Luneburg's possession more than a decade after the process to elevate Brunswick-Luneburg to the electoral dignity began, it could be argued that Celle was not an indivisible part of the Electorate [1]. Yet Seckendorff, an experienced diplomat and soldier within the Imperial sphere knew that Hanoverians well enough to know that they would not view Celle in the same light. King George II as the son of only offspring of the last Prince of Celle would never part with Celle, especially not after Seckendorff had already given the Duke of Brunswick-Wolfenbuttel the impression that he would be awarded the Principality of Calenburg west of the Leine. By giving away Calenburg, Seckendorff was already playing a dangerous game with Imperial law, because Calenburg unlike Celle had been a part of Brunswick-Luneburg when the elevation process began. The only reason that Seckendroff thought he could get away with what probably was a violation of the Imperial constitution was that he intended to leave the bulk of the Brunswick-Luneburg in the hands of George II. If Seckendorff tried to strip away too much from Brunswick-Luneburg then the Imperial Aulic Court might be forced to abandon its typical stance of supporting the Emperor and his machinations. Thus, Seckendorff viewed even giving away Celle as a political impossibility.

Since he was unable to give Augustus II an adequate reward, Seckendorff was risking driving Augustus II straight into the arms of the enemy. Maybe in the future or even at that very moment. Again, Saxony's soldiers, not the Emperor's occupied Brunswick-Luneburg. If Augustus II chose to he could return it right back to George II for some other reward or he could just refuse to leave and ignore the lack of Imperial approval for his occupation of Brunswick-Luneburg. Augustus II would not be the first Imperial prince to operate an illegal occupation of another Imperial principality, but him doing so in direct opposition to the Emperor would be a political catastrophe that could plummet the Empire into civil war as other Imperial princes became emboldened by Augustus II's defiance. The Wittelsbach Union of Bavaria, the Palatinate, Trier, and Cologne was not to be trusted, and already their forces were in possession of the Southern Netherlands and made up a good portion of Prince Eugene of Savoy's army on the Rhine. The only prince that Seckendorff thought would not blatantly betray the Emperor if given the chance was the King in Prussia, and King Friedrich Wilhelm was certainly strong enough to defeat the Saxons and reimpose order in the Empire. However, Friedrich Wilhelm would not act in such a fashion free of charge. He would make many demands of the Emperor before he moved a single soldier and after Friedrich Wilhelm was done, he would be too powerful for Charles VI to continue to play his game of making unfulfilled promises to Friedrich Wilhelm. So just as much as giving away Celle was impossible so too was failing to compensate Augustus II.

In this moment, Seckendorff Russian partner, Alexei Petrovich Bestuzhev-Ryumin offered a solution. To Bestuzhev, it was obvious why Augustus II was making such grand claims. The king was a man in ill health as all could see and the recent months spent completing an arduous campaign and spent away from the comforts of Dresden and Warsaw had not been kind to him. When Augustus II died, his son, Frederick Augustus would inherit the Electorate of Saxony, but he was not guaranteed the same right in Poland and Lithuania. Instead, Poland and Lithuania as their constitution dictated would elect their next king without any restrictions on their choice. There was nothing to hold them to electing Augustus II's son and in fact, the Polish and Lithuanian magnates had not elected a son of a king since 1632. The last time they even elected a relative, a brother, it turned into an absolute and utter disaster for the Commonwealth. Augustus II was mildly tolerable within the Commonwealth but he knew many of his subjects had grown to abhor his Saxon retinue and they were looking among their own for their next king. To add to Augustus II's woes, since the marriage of Marie Leszczynska to Louis XV of France there had been much discussion of returning Marie's father, Stanislaus Leszczynski to the throne after Augustus II's inevitable death. For this reason, Augustus II had come to doubt his own family's succession in Poland-Lithuania but he still wanted to keep his Saxony as the powerful and relatively independent state it had been while united with the Commonwealth. For that purpose, Augustus II needed to greatly augment Saxony's territories to provide it with additional people, revenues, and strength.

The reasoning behind Augustus II's demands was also clear to Seckendorff so he asked Bestuzhev want he proposed they do differently. At which point, Bestuzhev revealed that they needed to remove Augustus II's motivation for German annexations. By that, Bestuzhev meant that they needed to make Augustus II think that a Wettin succession in Poland-Lithuania could be made possible by Hapsburg and Russian influence. In Bestuzhev's eyes, if Augustus thought he could have Poland-Lithuania then he would not need Brunswick-Luneburg. However, Seckendorff thought this promise was even more impossible because that would involve the Emperor prolonging the independent and royal status of Saxony. This was a situation that Charles VI was only reluctantly enduring already and could barely be expected to endure for another set of decades until Frederick Augustus's death. However, Bestuzhev assured him that Russia could control Poland-Lithuania as it had been doing for years and that Poland-Lithuania would be no threat to the Hapsburgs. Still, Seckendorff thought that Charles VI would never accept the arrangement and also worried that a guarantee of Saxony's succession to a royal crown would make the demands of other Imperial allies even more severe. What would Prussia demand if Saxony got Poland? Bestuzhev's own response was the question of what else can we give Augustus II?

Eventually, Seckendorff came to realize that there was nothing else and that all he had were impossible options. If he denied Augustus II anything of significance then he risked war now and precipitated war in the future. If he gave Celle to Augustus II then George II would never make peace and the Emperor would be forced to take extreme measures to resolve an Electoral prince's unending defiance. An Imperial ban might have to be imposed. If he gave Poland to Augustus II then rather than alienating Augustus II, Seckendorff alienated the even more powerful Friedrich Wilhelm. Ultimately, Bestuzhev raised the thought of just using the typical vagueries of Emperor Charles VI to offer the Polish crown without guaranteeing it, to treat with Augustus II without signing a treaty with him, to promise without any true meaning. This idea carried some merit because the exclusion of Poland's crown from an official treaty would give him time to manipulate Prussia, but Seckendorff doubted Augustus II would be so easily misled. Nevertheless, with no better options, he was willing to try. To the happy surprise of Seckendorff, the sudden and unexpected thought of a crown for his son left Augustus II so tantalized that he failed to realize the fragility and ambiguity of the offer. Augustus II accepted the vague promise of Poland-Lithuania for his son and Seckendorff and Bestuzhev were able to continue to design the German elements of the peace. The courts of the Hapsburgs and Russia were shocked at the promise made by their diplomats, especially it ran counter to one of the terms of Russia's 1726 treaty with Prussia. According to that treaty, Frederick Augustus and Stanislaus Leszczynski were both explicitly excluded from the Polish succession, and Russia had unsuccessfully attempted to gain the Hapsburgs adherence to those restrictions. In Saint Petersburg, once Bestuzhev made clear to Ostermanthe complications related to Augustus II's demands, Russia recognized the necessity of ignoring the old treaty to provide space to forge a new peace for Europe. Meanwhile, in Vienna, Prince Eugene and Charles VI viewed the promise as a realistic means to drive a wedge between Prussia and Russia and bring both Russia and Saxony closer to the Hapsburgs. Thus, the governments in Saint Petersburg and Vienna confirmed the promises of their diplomats and left Augustus II under the impression that the next election in the Commonwealth would go to his son.

As time progressed and Augustus II became further removed from his meetings with Seckendorff in Herrenhausen he began to realize just how weak the promises made to him were. Even more worryingly, nothing had been put into official signed and ratified documentation. For Imperial support, Augustus II was relying on the mere word of Seckendorff and Emperor Charles VI, neither of whom had a reputation for incredible honesty. This seed of doubt in Augustus II's mind slowly grew as one thing after another seemed to indicate that Augustus II could not rely on the Imperial promises made at Herrenhausen. In the spring of 1730, just a year after Seckendorff purchased Augustus II's acceptance of peace, Emperor Charles VI rather blatantly breached the terms of the Treaty of the Quadruple Alliance. This settlement unlike the Treaty of Madrid was one that the Emperor was a signatory to and more worryingly the Treaty of the Quadruple Alliance was in many ways a revision of the Peace of Utrecht. If Charles VI was willing to trample over his own ratified signature and on the foundations which determined much of Europe's current borders and politics then why would he not turn a blind eye to the whispers of a winter promise? Augustus II's lack of faith in the Emperor only grew when Friedrich Wilhelm relayed how poorly Charles VI had supported Prussia in the Clamei dispute when Friedrich Wilhelm asked for Saxony's support against Brunswick-Luneburg. Rather than back up Prussia as Charles VI had promised, Charles VI tried to stay on the sidelines and later on tried to act as a neutral party that was friendly to both Prussia and Britain. If Charles VI would mistreat his strongest elector then what would stop him from doing the same to Augustus II?

Despite all of Charles VI's misdeeds, Augustus II was not yet ready to lose all hope and instead remained affiliated with the Viennese Alliance and remained publically loyal to the Emperor. The reason for this continued deference had less to do with Charles VI each day and became more about the Russian element of the alliance. Even if Charles VI was not to be trusted, he was not the only man to have promised Augustus II's son the crown of Poland. Bestuzhev as a representative of Russia and the indomitable Prince Aleksander Menshikov had made the same promise. Even if the Hapsburgs broke their promise, so long as the Russians kept theirs then the Wettin succession was secure. It would be Russia's armies, not the Hapsburg armies that would march into Poland if necessary to dictate its politics. The Russians had done so before. In fact, the Russians had been the ones who had reinstated Augustus II after Stanislaus' usurpation. Thus, the Russians mattered much more than the Hapsburgs and for the time it looked as if they would hold true even if the Hapsburgs did not. Under Menshikov and Osterman, they kept Augustus II's illegitimate son, Maurice, in power as the Duke of Courland, they continued Peter I's Baltic diplomacy, and they held true to their other alliances despite the passing of Catherine I of Russia. Within this framework, Augustus II believed that the Wettin succession was also included and also protected.

Whether Augustus II was right or wrong about Menshikov mattered not because, in the winter of 1730, the politics and dynamics of Russia became suddenly unclear when Menshikov retired to Ukraine. Anxiously Augustus II asked the Saxon ambassador, Jean Lefort, to clarify this situation. All Lefort's ever got was an unending torrent of confusion, which was to be the new way of the Russian court. The only thing that Lefort was certain of was that Peter II did not consider himself beholden to the policies of his predecessors and that he would act as he felt right. Although this statement was not specific to Augustus II's case, it seemed to serve as a sufficient answer to Augustus II's inquiries. From that point onward, he believed that Russia no longer could be expected to uphold its promise to achieve Frederick Augustus' election. Although Augustus II did not rule out the possibility that the Russians might consider it or might go through with it, Augustus II could not hold on solely to that flimsy possibility any longer. Augustus II had to treat the Russo-Hapsburg promise of Poland's crown as dead. At the same time, Augustus II had already missed out on his chance to gain more from Brunswick-Luneburg during either Empress Catherine's War or the agitations over Clamei, which left his son with only Saxony as his inheritance. Augustus II's only option to keep his family's legacy and power intact was a succession in Poland and Lithuania. Thus, Augustus II began to look elsewhere for the firm support of his son that he desperately wanted.

Augustus II found that support in an unlikely source, France. Despite the fact that Louis XV's father-in-law, Stanislaus Leszczynski, seemed to be a favored candidate in the next Polish-Lithuanian election, France seemed incredibly amenable to the idea of Frederick Augustus being the next King of Poland. Although the dynastic connection to Stanislaus mattered to many French high-ups, they were willing to ignore the many benefits from restoring the King's father-in-law to a royal crown for the political benefits of an alliance with Saxony. At the top of France's political society was Cardinal Fleury. For Cardinal Fleury, Empress Catherine's War had been a nightmare. Out of all the electoral princes in the Holy Roman Empire, only a single one did not contribute soldiers to the armies of the Viennese Alliance, that single stand out was, of course, George II as Elector Brunswick-Luneburg. Everyone else had raised their arms in support of the Emperor and against France. Even when Louis XIV had been in control of France, the Empire had never been so united against France. Yet somehow despite the goals of Fleury's policies specifically being to improve relations with the German princes, Fleury had in many ways made things worse. Louis XIV had avoided such a united front against him and had repeatedly enticed neutrality or even desertion among the Imperial princes through the strength of his France and his willingness to engage meaningfully with the Imperial princes. Thus, even as a hostile actor Louis XIV was able to bully or buy the submission or loyalty of many Imperial princes. By contrast, Fleury's restraint had allowed him to be outmaneuvered by the Holy Roman Emperor and had been taken as a sign of weakness and unreliability by the Imperial princes. Only through the disappointing performance of France's military was Fleury brought to understand that at least some of his approach to Imperial politics was flawed.

Once Fleury began to understand that his previous approach had failed miserably because of its own inadequacies he changed course somewhat, albeit not nearly as much as the new leader of the war party in France, Marshal Claude Louis Hector de Villars, thought necessary. The first evidence of this change in approach was found in Fleury's serious approach toward the Wittelsbach Union with the idea of an alliance against the Hapsburgs. These negotiations initially were carried out as part of the efforts to connect the British with the Wittelsbachs in opposition to the Prussians. Even though those first negotiations went poorly due to British areas of conflict with the Wittelsbachs and the Wittelsbachs refusal to strongly back Hanoverian schemes in the Empire, France continued the Wittelsbach negotiations on their own but could not get very far without Britain's support and potential subsidies. Although the Wittelsbachs were very willing to consider an alliance with France, they had a price in both land and money that Cardinal Fleury was hardly willing to pay. Without the ability to rely on the Wittelsbach Union that Max II Emanuel, former champion of French interests in Germany, had formed in his waning days, France had to look somewhere else and somewhere new for German support against the Emperor.

Although there was some discussion of the possibility of engaging with Prussia, Cardinal Fleury dismissed that approach as impossible given the Anglo-Prussian rivalry. Thus, the only other secular elector's alliance that could be pursued was Saxony's, Augustus II's Saxony. Through Count Karl Heinrich von Hoym, the Saxon ambassador to France, Fleury opened discussions of what a Franco-Saxon alliance would mean and look like [2]. The primary topic in these discussions was Augustus II's request for support in securing the crown of Poland for his son. Fleury and many others in France were willing to accept this request because they thought the benefits from having a Saxon ally directly north of Bohemia and also in control of Poland to the east of Silesia would outweigh the benefits provided by isolated King Stanislaus of Poland. Furthermore, Augustus II's friendly relations with Friedrich Wilhelm could provide the avenue for resolving the issues between Friedrich Wilhelm, George II, and France. Finally, if France got one of the electoral princes to abandon the side of the Emperor then they expected more, specifically the Wittelsbachs, would follow. Thus, Fleury agreed to the idea of providing the security and funds needed to elect Frederick Augustus to the Polish throne while also promising to hold Stanislaus in France. Without Stanislaus returning to Poland, his chances of being elected as the successor to Augustus II dramatically declined. In return, Augustus II asked for no subsidies and offered his army to France [3]. This agreement was memorialized in the secret Treaty of Dresden. Saxony had quietly turned its back on the Emperor but in doing so had regained the succession to the Polish throne, which gave comfort to the aging Augustus II who could feel his death approaching.

[1] Legally speaking, electorates are supposed to be indivisible but that has not stopped emperors from taking land or trading land between electorates multiple times.
[2] Hoym was the Saxon individual in OTL responsible for the Franco-Saxon alliance. He was described as pro-French in general, so I assume that in TTL he will also be an advocate for a Franco-Saxon alliance.
[3] Augustus II is desperate for support and negotiations are proceeding more rapidly than in OTL because Augustus II has wasted some time relying on Hapsburg-Russian support. For this reason, he goes without subsidies, which he has heard sunk Franco-Wittelsbach negotiations.

Most of this is just a review a look into the Wettin perspective. The purpose is to serve as a recap and a setup for future items.

Word Count: 3421

 

[Archduke]

36: The Portuguese Alternative

Dom Manuel, Infante de Portugal​

King Augustus II of Poland had hoped that his betrayal of the Holy Roman Emperor would escape discovery from the Imperial spies that he knew populated Dresden's court and the Russian ones at Warsaw. However, this hope was always a vain one. Someone was bound to sell Saxony's secrets sooner or later and unless Augustus II could will himself to death quickly then later would arrive well before his son's election to the Polish throne. By the summer of 1731, a few months after the Franco-Saxon alliance formed, rumors of its existence and its stipulations were already circulating the courts of Europe. At this point, Augustus II decided to more or less throw off his tattered cloak of secrecy to inform Prussia of the alliance and ask if Prussia would join it and adhere to a Wettin succession in Poland. These negotiations at Muhlberg nearly succeeded in stealing away the Emperor's most powerful supporter but the escape of Prince Fritz and France's involvement in it scuttled the treaty. From there, Friedrich Wilhelm's courtiers Friedrich zu Innhausen und Knyphausen and Friedrich Wilhelm von Grumbkow informed the British and Hapsburg governments respectively of the veracity of the rumors [1].

Once Saxony's shift had become a known fact through the Holy Roman Empire, it did not take long for Franco-Wittelsbach negotiations to be revived. Even though the Wittelsbachs just like Saxony had been supporters of the Emperor in the last war, they just like Saxony were also opportunists who would willingly resell their loyalties to the highest bidder. With Saxony in France's camp, Emperor Charles VI suddenly looked much more vulnerable and an impression was produced that France was taking its anti-Hapsburg diplomacy more seriously. For these reasons, the Wittelsbach Union expected to reap considerable rewards from realigning with France and fighting alongside France and Saxony against the Emperor in the next war. However, the Wittelsbachs were also considering the possibility of using the threat of realignment with France to coerce the Emperor into giving them more, firmer concessions so that they remained part of his camp. These negotiations proceeded slowly due to the French taking a dilatory approach to them and due to Wittelsbachs still wanting significant sums of money. Thus, a Wittelsbach betrayal did not immediately succeed the Saxon betrayal. Instead, the most important result of the Saxon reversal occurred in Vienna. Even though the Hapsburgs had never been solidly behind the idea of placing Frederick Augustus on the Polish throne, they had been willing to tolerate the idea so long as Saxony remained loyal and held to the Pragmatic Sanction. Had Augustus II not switched camps then the Hapsburgs may very well have followed through on the promises of Empress Catherine's War if only because the other option, Stanislaus Leszczynski, was completely unacceptable. However, by placing his trust in France rather than the Hapsburgs, Augustus II left the Hapsburgs with no choice but to void their promise and immediately began working to identify and promote an alternative candidate to Frederick Augustus.

Count Franz Karl Wratislaw von Mitrowitz, a Bohemian diplomat, outlined the ideal candidate for the Hapsburgs to seek [2]. Firstly, Wratislaw stated that no matter what, Stanislaus Leszczynski's succession must be avoided. Leszczynski had shown his reforming and ambitious nature and those exact characteristics made him the most dangerous candidate of all. Secondly, the candidate had to be landless. It was in the best interests of the Hapsburgs that they did not exchange the Saxon-Polish-Lithuanian union for another union with some other state. It was also important that besides being landless that the candidate was insignificant in his own right. For example, James Francis Edward Stuart, husband of Maria Klementyna Sobieska, was landless, Catholic, and had a dynastic connection to Poland [3]. However, as the Jacobite claimant to Britain his candidature would have been extremely provocative and would have certainly incurred the wrath of the Hanoverians. Finally, Wratislaw said it was preferable that the candidate was not German. A German prince would always be connected to his homeland and loyal to his family, which could create issues for the Hapsburgs in the future.

Under these criteria, very few people could be considered viable candidates by the Hapsburgs. The Italian dynasties were dying out: the Farnese were gone, the Medici were on their way, and the Bourbons were to replace them. The only Italian candidate was the unmarried Gian Federico d'Este who was the second son of Duke Rinaldo d'Este of Modena and whose brother, Duke Francesco III d'Este, already had a son to succeed him [4]. Thus, Gian Federico was landless and unlikely to inherit anything, and also Modena was a small and weak enough state that as a second son, Gian Federico was an insignificant figure. Gian Federico's unmarried status was an additional bonus, which made it possible to marry him to the Emperor's sister, Maria Magdalena [5]. However, in general, Gian Federico was an unfamiliar figure to the Hapsburgs. For that reason, the Hapsburgs looked beyond Italy, to Infante Manuel of Portugal, Count of Ourem [6]. Infante Manuel like Gian Federico was a second son and like Gian Federico, his brother had already produced heirs. Thus, Infante Manuel would never succeed in Portugal. Also, just like Gian Federico, he was unmarried, which left the option of marrying him to Maria Magdalena open. Besides providing all the same benefits as Gian Federico, Infante Manuel was a cousin of Charles VI and was a familiar one at that. Infante Manuel had spent the last two decades living off his cousin in Germany and in Italy. He had also served as an Imperial soldier and was even an Imperial Marshal. Importantly, from his interactions with Charles VI and his ministers, Infante Manuel had portrayed himself as someone who was adventurous rather than ambitious. He was someone who might enjoy being a king but he did not actively seek out such honor and duty. Instead, he preferred to find some fulfillment in soldiering and entertainment in short and non-serious court romances. In almost every way, Infante Manuel was the perfect candidate for Wratislaw's criteria.

The Hapsburgs quickly came to consider Infante Manuel as their candidate and by August 1731, they communicated this sentiment to Russia. Augustus II's earlier realization that Russia was the most important and vital player in the impending Polish-Lithuanian election was correct and the Hapsburgs understood this fact. Accordingly, the Hapsburgs wrote to the Russians about their concerns with Saxony's realignment and their belief that a different candidate needed to be uplifted by the Hapsburgs, Russia, and Prussia to avoid Frederick Augustus' election or worse, Stanislaus'. The Hapsburgs considered Infante Manuel the best candidate from among Europe's princes because he would not be one to reform the Commonwealth, nor would he desire to oppose either the Hapsburgs or Russia, and nor was he competent enough to do so even if he wanted to. Finally, the Hapsburgs pointed out that Manuel was unwed and could be married to Tsarevna Natalya or even the daughter of Tsarevna Catherine Ivanovna, Elisabeth Katharina Christine, if such a marriage suited the Russians. However, Emperor Peter II refused the match for Natalya because the plans to make Manuel the next King of Poland would have taken Natalya away from Moscow and to Warsaw. To be fair, the Hapsburg proposals for Manuel and Natalya's marriage were never all that serious because of the Hapsburg concern that marriage to the Emperor of All Russia's sister would have made Manuel to subservient to Russia. Regarding Manuel's candidature in general, the Russians were uncertain of it and instead asked if there was no other more suitable candidate. The Russians preferred a "Piast", which was meant to be a native Pole of Lithuanian who would be compliant with Russian and Hapsburg wishes [7]. The Russian interest in a Piast over Manuel had more to do with the Russian lack of interest in funding an expensive election campaign or perhaps having to go to war to install a prince that Poland-Lithuania did not know or care for. It was rare for the Polish crown to be awarded to a powerless foreign prince with no connection to Poland-Lithuania and Russia was concerned that it would become responsible for making this rare phenomenon occur.

In the face of this reluctance from Russia, Emperor Charles VI decided to send the man who first recommended Infante Manuel, Count Wratislaw, to Moscow so that he could personally explain the value of Manuel's candidature to Osterman and Peter II. While Wratislaw prepared and then traveled toward Moscow, the Hapsburgs looked into gaining Prussia's accession to the scheme but were firmly rebuffed as Friedrich Wilhelm was too busy dealing with Fritz's misadventure to have any interest in a Hapsburg scheme for Poland. To add to matters, Friedrich Wilhelm's distrust and distaste for the Emperor had grown due to the Emperor's unwelcome interference in Fritz's judgment. When Wratislaw arrived in Moscow, his efforts to gain Russia's approval of Manuel were immediately confronted by the challenge of Peter II being on an extended hunting trip and not being expected to handle government or foreign affairs for weeks. In the absence of Peter II, Wratislaw had an audience with the Supreme Privy Council but discovered that it was a fractious and dysfunctional mess whose loudest member, Vasily Lukich Dolgorukov, was also its least competent one. Questions from the more competent members of the council such as Marshals Dolgorukov and Golitsyn's question of what Russia had to gain from putting the Emperor's cousin on Poland's throne were complicated by Vasily Lukich's constant interruptions and Prince Dmitry Mikhailovich Golitsyn's refutations of whatever ideas Vasily Lukich advanced. However, an even bigger issue than the Supreme Privy Council's broken nature was that all Wratislaw had to offer them was a compliant prince. He offered Russia no land and in fact, part of his proposal was that Russia should take no land from Poland-Lithuania. The only benefit that Wratislaw was willing to provide Russia was that he could promise Russia would be required to front none of the expenses necessary for Infante Manuel's election. Russia would only be required to provide military pressure to influence the decision of the Polish-Lithuanian magnates and if necessary, the force to deny Frederick Augustus or Stanislaus' election. This was a sorry offer and Wratislaw left the Supreme Privy Council without having gained the support of any one of its members.

Having failed to convince the Supreme Privy Council, Wratislaw briefly considered traveling to Ukraine to visit Menshikov and see if he still had any influence in court or over the young Emperor. However, the standing Imperial ambassador to Russia, Anton Ignaz Amadeus de Bussy-Rabutin, dissuaded Wratislaw from that course of action [8]. Bussy-Rabutin noted that Peter II had turned entirely against Menshikov so visiting the disgraced Generalissimo would do nothing but aggravate the Russian autocrat. Instead, Bussy-Rabutin suggested that Wratislaw privately discuss the matter with Osterman. The German diplomat was typically friendly to the interests of the Holy Roman Emperor and in private was more likely to display that friendliness. Osterman also still had some influence with Peter II and had an enormous influence over the foreign policy which Peter II approved. In line with this suggestion, Wratislaw visited Osterman's house and talked with him alone. Wratislaw made it clear that there was no other European prince that the Emperor thought better suited for the Polish crown and also that the Emperor did not have any particular interest in electing a Pole or Lithuanian. He did not trust a Pole or Lithuanian to be truly compliant with the Hapsburgs and Russians.

Osterman speedily came to agree with Wratislaw and once Peter II returned from his hunting trip, Osterman went to him to champion the cause of Infante Manuel [9]. However, Vasily Lukich had already gotten to Peter II through Ivan Dolgorukov, so Peter II's mind was already forming an opinion and that opinion was not favorable toward Infante Manuel. Still, Osterman had to at least try so he laid out the case for Russia supporting Manuel. At first, Peter II even doubted whether Russia should intervene in the first place. He pointed out the exorbitant cost of war and Saxony's previous friendship with Russia, but through reminding Peter II of Saxony's role in capturing Prince Fritz, Osterman soured Peter II's opinion of a Wettin succession. Even then, Peter II was reluctant to agree to intervention and rather taciturnly asked for what reason he should support Manuel and not choose a man of his own liking. Since there was little political reason, Osterman tried to suggest that Infante Manuel as a person was well-suited to be the next king and Osterman was sure that Peter II would think so if he met Infante Manuel. To this, Peter II offered that Infante Manuel should come to Moscow then and show that he was the right kind of person to be Poland's next king.

Peter II's invitation to Infante Manuel proved to be more than a passing comment because in the days that followed he refused to endorse or condemn the Portuguese prince until he had a chance to meet him. Without Peter II's approval, Osterman's favor toward the Hapsburg scheme and Manuel's candidature was worthless. Osterman alone would not be able to push through a war for Poland and for the moment he was definitely alone in his support for Manuel. The Dolgorukovs still considered Osterman a rival and did not want to see one of "his" schemes succeed, and the Golitsyns chose to listen to Pavel Yaguzhinsky when he said that there were plenty of native Poles who would subservient to Russia if made king. Unless the Emperor or one of these major families changed its mind on Manuel then Russia would never support Manuel, which Osterman made clear to Wratislaw. In turn, Wratislaw wrote back to Vienna of the situation and recommended that Manuel be sent to Russia. Wratislaw viewed a visit from Manuel as the only possible means of salvaging the scheme. If Manuel could win the favor of the Emperor and show that he would be just as subservient as any Pole then Wratislaw expected Russia would throw its support behind him. If Manuel failed then at least the Hapsburgs knew that they needed to move on to the next candidate. Since the boy-emperor was not a patient person, Wratislaw's message asked that Manuel be sent as quickly as possible. For the Hapsburgs, there was little hesitation in deciding to send Manuel to Russia. Russia and Peter II's approvals were vital to the success of the scheme and without them, the scheme was destined to fail. Thus, through the thick of Russian winter, Manuel was carried to Moscow under the name of Count von Setubal. This attempt to disguise Manuel's journey to Russia was easily seen through by the foreign agents in Moscow and led to the Saxon ambassador to Russia, Lefort, asking what the purpose of Manuel's trip to Russia was [10]. Osterman tried to present Manuel's trip as one of a personal matter by saying that Manuel had come to seek the hand of Elisabeth Katharina Christine, nothing more. However, Lefort did not buy this lie and suspected the true reason was tied to the Polish-Lithuanian succession. Thus, Lefort was more or less able to uncover Manuel's candidature and inform Augustus II of it. Still, if Manuel's candidature was to last any longer, he would have to win over Peter II first.

When Manuel arrived in Moscow, he did so by horse rather than carriage at the recommendation of Osterman. As Manuel rode into the city through a punishing snowfall he was met by the young emperor who had ridden out to greet his guest personally. Together, the emperor and would-be king rode through the streets of Moscow and into the Kremlin as they talked with each other. Although Manuel shivered he did not complain while the youthful Peter II seemed to revel in the cold. During their conversation, Manuel's jovial and fun demeanor matched the nature of Peter II. Even before the two of them entered the palace, Peter II had taken a liking to him [11]. At dinner, Manuel described his adventures across Europe including escaping Portugal without his brother's approval, entering the Imperial army's service, and gallivanting through Europe's courts. These stories captivated Peter II who wished he could have the same opportunity and mentioned how plans to send him on a grand tour had been derailed by Empress Catherine's War. Having been forewarned, Manuel did not mention the fact that Peter II's grandfather, Peter I, had gone on a tour of Europe even as an Emperor. Instead, Manuel said that when he was elected King of Poland that Peter II would be welcome to visit his court and have a chance to hunt in the forests of Poland. The topic of hunting was much discussed and led to Peter II asking if Manuel would be interested in a winter hunt. Of course, Manuel consented as a means of getting closer to the Emperor. Over the course of the next few weeks, Manuel would spend each day talking to and complimenting Peter II or hunting with him. By the end of January 1732, Manuel's mission achieved its goal when Peter II took him to a Supreme Privy Council meeting, the first one that Peter II had been to in months. At that meeting, Peter II announced that Russia would be supporting the candidature of Infante Manuel as the next King of Poland and he asked that Osterman hammer out the details of the treaty while Marshals Dolgorukov and Golitsyn drew up any necessary military plans.

The sudden and major decision on Russia's policy toward Poland-Lithuania rattled the Supreme Privy Council. The councilors immediately began to ask a series of questions of Peter II to extract all the details of this decision and the thinking behind it, but Peter II did not have the time for their pestering. With some heat in his voice, Peter II repeated his instructions to the council before exiting the council's chambers and taking Manuel with him. Once the emperor left, the Supreme Privy Council began to ask the questions of if this was the right policy, if Infante Manuel was the right candidate, and if a different policy needed to be instituted. Osterman as the Russian advocate for Infante Manuel, of course, argued that Infante Manuel was the right candidate for Poland and that he had all the traits that Russia needed in the next King of Poland. Osterman rattled off Wratislaw's list of all Infante Manuel's deficiencies such as his non-serious nature, lack of follow-through, appreciation for wealth, and so on. This argument proved to be enough for the Dolgorukovs who were tied to Peter II's reign and its success, at least until Natalya and Ivan produced a child. The Golitsyns and even Golovkin still questioned the strategy and especially questioned Infante Manuel's Hapsburg blood ties. However, Osterman and the Dolgorukovs for once stood side by side and ultimately convinced Golovkin that Infante Manuel was as good as any other candidate in terms of personal attributes and that his candidate would lead to the Hapsburgs fronting more of the bill. With Golovkin's acquiesce, the Supreme Privy Council approved Infante Manuel's candidature and began to do as Peter II had instructed by making Russian support for Infante Manuel a reality.

With the backing of the government, Osterman began to negotiate the details of the Polish-Lithuanian succession with Wratislaw. Since the Hapsburgs were not keen on limiting their options, Wratislaw recommended that the treaties terms regarding candidates did not explicitly and solely sponsor Infante Manuel nor exclude Frederick Augustus [12]. Instead, the treaty should only exclude Stanislaus, permit a Wettin succession if the Wettins submitted themselves to the will of the Hapsburgs and Russia, if not, then the candidate should be a "Piast", and failing that should be a suitable younger son of a king. The other terms of the treaty called for an allied armed intervention in Poland-Lithuania to ensure Manuel's election but required no funds from Russia to bribe the magnates of Poland-Lithuania. One big item was that an intervention would be made under the guise of protecting Poland-Lithuania's liberties and thus no territorial partition of Poland-Lithuania was to be considered. To Osterman, this proposal sounded fair and reasonable and the terms about the candidate did not worry Osterman because he considered them to be meaningless words meant to hide the fact that the Hapsburgs and Russia had already chosen Infante Manuel as their candidate. Peter II did not view the terms in the same way [13]. He had been put under the impression that Manuel was the Hapsburgs' candidate and he accepted him as such and now the Hapsburgs refused to even mention his name in a treaty. The thought of not mentioning Manuel was simply ridiculous to Peter II. Wratislaw claimed that to name Manuel risked revealing his candidature but Peter II refused to buy that. He was willing to not take any land from Poland-Lithuania and willing to commit Russia's army to install Manuel but he wanted Manuel to be named as the candidate that the Hapsburgs would accept. Since Wratislaw's instructions favored an ambiguous treaty over an explicit one he deferred by asserting that he would have to write back to Vienna to receive approval for the terms that Peter II sought and also that they might have to wait on terms from Prussia.

While Wratislaw delayed, he decided to get Manuel out of Russia where his presence and his friendship with Peter II could become a nuisance for Hapsburg negotiations. Wratislaw achieved Manuel's exit by convincing Manuel that it would be necessary for him to travel to Poland-Lithuania to gain some familiarity with the and its people before becoming its king. Wratislaw also suggested that Manuel meet with Maria Zofia Denhoff née Sieniawska, a hugely wealthy Polish magnate with vast tracts of land. In the meantime, Wratislaw relied on Osterman and Natalya to shift Peter II's mind toward the treaty that the Hapsburgs wanted. Wratislaw also sent word to Seckendorff of the preferred treaty and asked that he get Prussia's accession to it so that Russia's accession would be made easier. At Potsdam, the resolution of Fritz's judgment had allowed Friedrich Wilhelm to return his attention to matters of the state such as the Polish-Lithuanian scheme. He saw the Hapsburg terms and was displeased at the prospect of receiving no land from Poland, which made Friedrich Wilhelm revisit the thought of supporting the Wettin succession in return for land. However, the thought of having to align himself with the French who had just tried to steal his son from under him was disdainful to Friedrich Wilhelm. That thought alone allowed Seckendorff to keep pushing the Hapsburg scheme to place Infante Manuel on the throne. Seckendorff described Manuel as a peaceful and even dumb prince who would be no threat to Prussia. Seckendorff did say that Prussia would be required to commit funds to Manuel's election but promised that Prussia would be reimbursed by the King of Portugal who was interested in getting his brother on the throne of Poland. However, the failure to offer much else made Friedrich Wilhelm reluctant to consent to the treaty, especially when Russia had not done so already. Meanwhile, in Russia, Osterman was having no luck in changing the mind of the stubborn Peter II who made clear that he would sign nothing that did not name Manuel as the heir above anyone else. At the same time, Osterman failed to convince the Dolgorukovs or Golitsyns to support him in this manner. The Dolgorukovs chose to back Peter II on the issue and the Golitsyns refused to get involved.

Eventually, Osterman, not Peter II, caved to avoid losing his last bits of influence and favor with the Russian emperor. Thus, Osterman wrote a new treaty with the first term being that Russia, the Hapsburgs, and Prussia would all agree to support the candidature of Infante Manuel, the second term was that Stanislaus' succession would not be tolerated no matter what, and only the third suggested that if Manuel died before the election or should prove an unsuccessful candidate then would others be considered. Among those others, Frederick Augustus would be considered acceptable so long as he submitted to any demands from Russia, the Hapsburgs, and Prussia. The other terms of the treaty were the same as the Hapsburg proposal. No land would be sought from Poland-Lithuania, any funds used to elect Infante Manuel would be reimbursed by Portugal, and the allies would invade Poland-Lithuania together to ensure Infante Manuel's election. Specifically, each country was expected to contribute 12,000 men, 8,000 infantry and 4,000 horse to the invasion effort. This treaty was presented to Wratislaw and also sent to the Prussians to receive their approval. The sudden energy of Russia disturbed Friedrich Wilhelm who had been led to believe that Russia was a state in recession but suddenly it was the one dictating Poland-Lithuania's succession just as it had done so more than two decades before. Russia looked as if it was no weaker than before, at least for the moment. In the face of this resolve and strength, Friedrich Wilhelm chose to sign the treaty rather than risk being on the wrong side of the war and on the wrong side of Russian militarism. This relatively quick accession to the treaty was not matched by the Hapsburgs. Charles VI and his ministers were surprised to see the negotiations seemingly stripped right out of their hands by Russia and saw these new terms as far too limiting. Most importantly, Prince Eugene feared that signing the treaty ensured that there would be a war with France and Saxony and Prince Eugene expected the Wittelsbachs and Britain to also be on the other side of the war. The entire western half of the Empire could fall into France's camp and then France, Britain, and the Dutch Republic could fund and command a serious invasion that would punch through the Imperials fortresses on the Rhine and quickly deliver an army to Vienna's doorstep. This fear led to the Hapsburgs withholding their approval of the treaty and trying to negotiate a new deal.

The Hapsburgs efforts did not go far with Peter II who found their behavior confusing and infuriating. They had offered up Infante Manuel and now they hesitated to back him completely. If they would hesitate, Peter II would not. He was determined to champion Infante Manuel one way or another. Peter II's devotion to Manuel only grew after Manuel succeeded in gaining an engagement to Maria Zofia and returned to Moscow to celebrate the news with Peter II [14]. This same engagement gravely upset the Hapsburgs who had still planned to marry Infante Manuel to Maria Magdalena. Infante Manuel had even proposed to Maria Magdalena before he left (of course, he had proposed to countless other women before). Soon after Manuel's return to Moscow, he witnessed the birth of Peter II's daughter, Sofia, and was even named among her godparents, which was a powerful statement of Peter II's commitment to Manuel and his candidature. The Russians, specifically, Peter II would not back down and in every way possible they seemed bent on coercing the Hapsburg's accession to the treaty. But Charles VI could be just as stubborn as Peter II and he refused to bow before him. They might both share the title of emperor, but Peter II was a child who needed to learn his place. This stubbornness would prevent the final signature from being placed on the treaty in any reasonable amount of time. Thus on March 11, 1732, when the old Augustus II succumbed to his illness in Warsaw, the treaty for Infante Manuel's succession remained incomplete and unratified [15]. Nevertheless, to the spectators of European politics, it seemed clear that the only two candidates that the powers of Europe would permit in the election for the next King of Poland were Frederick Augustus and Infante Manuel. The former would be supported by France at the least and many more if French diplomacy went well. The latter would be supported by Russia and Prussia. The Hapsburgs would most probably have to throw their lot in with Infante Manuel as well unless they were willing to gamble on supporting their own candidate and challenging the Russian behemoth, the Prussian war machine, and the Franco-Saxon alliance all by themselves.

[1] Friedrich zu Innhausen und Knyphausen was a Prussian minister in the pay of Britain during this time period.
[2] Wratislaw in OTL led the Hapsburg negotiations around the Polish succession and I have kept him doing the same in TTL because he remains a top Hapsburg official.
[3] In OTL, James Francis Edward Stuart was thought of as a potential candidate for the Polish throne, so I thought I should mention that here.
[4] In OTL, Gian Federico d'Este was dead by this time. In TTL, he is still alive and seeing as he has many of the same attributes as Infante Manuel had in OTL, I think he would be considered as a possible candidate.
[5] A big part of Hapsburg planning around the Polish succession in OTL was trying to marry Archduchess Maria Magdalena to their candidate. I assume so that the Hapsburgs can increase their influence in Poland-Lithuania and combat the Russian dominance in the country. In TTL, I do not see why the Hapsburgs would not seek to do the same.
[6] Infante Manuel was the OTL Hapsburg candidate. Since he is still alive and is still the same person, the Hapsburgs end up choosing him for the same reasons as OTL.
[7] In OTL, the Russians initially had an interest in a Piast. I am not sure from who that Piast idea emerged but seeing as Osterman was part of that foreign ministry, I had kept the initial Russian preference toward a Piast.
[8] Bussy-Rabutin is still around in TTL. The significance of him still being around is just that Wratislaw has someone who knows Russia to help him during this mission.
[9] In OTL, Osterman had a high preference toward the Russo-Hapsburg alliance and often favored whatever policy was recommended by the Hapsburgs. In OTL, this preference included supporting Hapsburg strategies over the Polish succession. Given this OTL preference, I see Osterman also favoring Hapsburg ideas in TTL.
[10] In OTL, Infante Manuel tried to move through Europe incognito and no one believed this cover story. I similarly see his cover story failing in TTL.
[11] Infante Manuel seems like the exact sort of person who Peter II would like and share interests with, so during this meeting I have given them a connection.
[12] In OTL despite proposing Infante Manuel as their candidate, the Hapsburgs always were ambiguous in treaties about supporting Manuel. In OTL, this ambiguity seemed to emerge over the Hapsburg fear of ending up in a war with France by leaving themselves no room to negotiate a peaceful compromise. This fear holds in TTL so the Hapsburgs are going for ambiguous treaties in TTL.
[13] In OTL, the Russians did not care about Infante Manuel and approved the ambiguous treaty. In TTL, Manuel is a friend of the Russian emperor so the ambiguous treaty is not accepted.
[14] In OTL, Infante Manuel did not win Maria Zofia's hand but he also asked it of her after he had a failed trip to Russia. In TTL, after a successful trip to Russia, I think he might be more successful in gaining her hand.
[15] King Augustus II dies earlier because his health in TTL is worse than OTL due to the hardships he experienced campaigning during Empress Catherine's War.

Word Count: 5301

 

[Archduke]

37: His Majesty's Honor

Marshal Claude Louis Hector de Villars​

By March 15, 1732, just four days after the passing of Augustus II, news of the King of Poland's death arrived in Vienna from the Imperial minister in Warsaw, Count Wilczek. This news sent a shiver through the highest echelons of the Hapsburg government formed by the Geheime Conferenz (Secret Conference) and Hofkriegsrat (War Council). Both of these bodies were presided over by the most esteemed general and statesman of the Hapsburg domains, Prince Eugene of Savoy. However, at the advanced age of 68 and having overseen a war and two crises in just the past five years, the noble knight of Savoy's health was failing him [1]. At council meetings, his loud coughs were a constant interruption and his handkerchief was always discolored by phlegm and mucus. Rumors that Prince Eugene's problems extended beyond his body and to his mind even floated through the Hapsburg court. The constant attendance to Prince Eugene by his secretary, Ignaz Koch, and Prince Eugene's habit of trading whispers with Ignaz did not help these rumors dissipate [2]. Prince Eugene's physical and possibly mental infirmity meant that as uncertainty hung over the Hapsburgs and Europe and the drums of war began to echo in the distance, a younger man, Johann Christoph von Bartenstein, secretary for the Geheime Conferenz, was able to emerge as one of the leading voices within the government.

The Geheime Conferenz met immediately to discuss the matter of Augustus II's death and its obvious consequence, an impending election for Poland's next king. The issue before the Geheime Conferenz was that if they allowed the French to place Augustus II's son, Friedrich August II of Saxony, on the Polish throne then the ruler of both Saxony and Poland-Lithuania would become indebted to France. In other words, the Hapsburgs could expect Saxony and Poland-Lithuania to act in France's favor in the next war. However, if the Hapsburgs opposed Friedrich August II's election as King of Poland then the next war would be weeks away rather than years away. Furthermore, if the Hapsburgs wanted to oppose Friedrich August II's election then the Hapsburgs needed the assistance and support of Russia. The price for Russian help was clear, sponsor Infante Manuel of Portugal as the next King of Poland. Although this price had some monetary value attached to it as the Hapsburgs would be expected to front some of the bill for bribing Polish and Lithuanian magnates to vote for Infante Manuel that price was well worth the tens of thousands of Russian soldiers that it would buy. During Empress Catherine's War, the Russians had shown that their victories over Sweden during the Great Northern War were no aberration, and more importantly, the Russians showed that they could take their armies hundreds of miles into Germany and still achieve the same success. With the Russians by their side, the Hapsburgs could be confident that the war caused by denying Friedrich August II would be won.

Yet for the Hapsburgs there was a price beyond just having to help Infante Manuel and bribe the Magnates. For the Hapsburgs, choosing to elect Infante Manuel would have been an admission of the superiority of the Russians in the Russo-Hapsburg alliance. Despite the fact that the Hapsburgs had originally suggested Infante Manuel as a candidate, by March 1732, he was in every way the Russian candidate. First, Infante Manuel had gone from being an irritating guest in Vienna to being a welcome and beloved guest in Moscow. Next, Infante Manuel had gone from being the expected husband of Archduchess Maria Magdalena to being the fiancee of Maria Zofia Denhoff, a Polish magnate. Finally, Infante Manuel had gone from being the cousin of Holy Roman Emperor Charles VI to being the godfather of Tsarevna Sofia, daughter of Emperor Peter II of Russia. The Russians treated Infante Manuel like their own and they were fervently defending his candidacy as the next King of Poland. If the Hapsburgs bent then they felt that not only would they see Poland-Lithuania become even more of a Russian satellite but also that the Russians would think less of the Hapsburgs. Since Charles VI could not stand to be considered junior to the boy-emperor of Russia, he abhorred the idea of accepting the Russian conditions for cooperation in the Polish succession. This issue had prevented the Hapsburgs from acceding to the Russian treaty before Augustus II's death and even in the wake of his death, the Hapsburgs remained reluctant. However, the Hapsburgs worried the Russians would interpret a lack of cooperation as a breach of the Russo-Hapsburg alliance. Such a breach might cause the Russo-Hapsburg alliance to break entirely, and at the very least would push the Russians closer to the Prussian upstarts. Thus, the Hapsburgs felt that in the end, no matter what, they needed to come to terms with the Russians.

One other reason for the Hapsburg reluctance to champion Infante Manuel as their first and sole candidate for the Polish throne was that even after the Saxon betrayal and Franco-Saxon alliance, the Hapsburgs still believed it was possible to bring the Saxons back into the fold of the Hapsburg camp. Despite everything that had happened, the Hapsburgs thought that they still had a chance to convince Friedrich August II that his interests would be better served by submitting himself to the superiority of the Hapsburgs. As unlikely as this thought seems there were some practical and valid reasons for the Hapsburgs to hold this belief. Firstly, Friedrich August II had not been the one responsible for forming the Franco-Saxon alliance. Instead, Friedrich August II's father had been the one who had betrayed the Emperor and aligned with France. The Hapsburgs hoped that Friedrich August II would not feel obligated to follow in his father's footsteps and hold on to this alliance [3]. Considering the fact that the Prussians and Russians were currently opposed to Friedrich August II's election in Poland and considering the fact that Prussia could singlehandedly devastate Saxony while Russia swarmed Poland, the Hapsburgs thought that they could convince Friedrich August II that the French alliance was worthless. Only through submission to the Hapsburgs and their demands could Friedrich August II's candidature gain the necessary approval from the Hapsburgs, Russia, and Prussia. Or at least that was the argument that the Hapsburgs wanted to make to Friedrich August II. Although the scenario laid out above was one that the Hapsburgs had in mind they also had another one, a nightmarish one, that was stuck in their minds. The other scenario involved Britain, Brunswick-Luneburg, the Wittelsbach Union, the Dutch Republic, Denmark-Norway, and Sweden all joining in on the Franco-Saxon alliance. The combined might of those nations and their militaries would be more than enough to save Saxony from devastation before forcing the acceptance of Friedrich August II as King of Poland. If anything, this second scenario added to the desperation of the Hapsburgs to turn Friedrich August II to their side. The Hapsburgs prayed that if they stole Friedrich August II from the French camp that war would be averted. The Hapsburgs hoped that if they stole France's candidate France would simply allow the theft to occur and move on. They thought that if the theft happened suddenly then perhaps the French would not have time to rethink their strategy before the Polish election and the French would be left without cause for war.

During the first meetings of Geheime Conferenz after Augustus II's death, these thoughts and contradictions paralyzed the government as they tried to sort through them to form a single coherent strategy. The debates within the Geheime Conferenze were held mainly between Philipp Ludwig Wenzel von Sinzendorf on one side and Gundaker Thomas Starhemberg and Field Marshal Joseph Lothar von Königsegg-Rothenfels on the other. Starhemberg and Königsegg pointed out that the treasury had been practically emptied by the last war and that without Spanish subsidies, the Hapsburgs would have to take on incredible amounts of debt to sustain another war. Thus, Starhemberg and Königsegg argued that the Hapsburgs needed to convince Friedrich August II to betray France. If this betrayal was executed correctly then a war could be avoided. If not then at the very least the Hapsburgs would have Saxony's army and hopefully, Saxony's loyalty would convince others in the Empire, namely the Wittelsbach, to also remain loyal. On the opposite side, Sinzendorf was of the opinion that the Hapsburgs could not tolerate another Elector of Saxony as King of Poland. The whole reason that the Hapsburgs were currently in this mess was that Augustus II had been allowed to enjoy the liberties of being King of Poland for too long and had begun to think that turning on the Emperor was possible. If the Hapsburgs allowed another Elector of Saxony to become the King of Poland then they would only see another King of Poland turn hostile to the Hapsburgs. Sinzendorf further reminded his colleagues that Friedrich August II was married to Archduchess Maria Josepha, the eldest daughter of Emperor Joseph I, and also that Friedrich August II had never personally admitted the Pragmatic Sanction. For this reason, Sinzendorf feared that if the Hapsburgs helped Friedrich August II win the Polish throne then Friedrich August II would ultimately repay that friendship by using Poland-Lithuania to usurp Maria Theresa's right to the Hapsburg hereditary lands. At this point, Sinzendorf argued that the best path forward was to accept Infante Manuel quickly, or if his colleagues were so opposed to Infante Manuel's candidature then they needed to select one of the Piasts that the Russians had named earlier. As a reminder, Bartenstein named Prince Michał Serwacy Wiśniowiecki, Grand Marshal Franciszek Bieliński of the Crown, Prince Paweł Karol Sanguszko, Prince Antoni Benedykt Lubomirski, and Palatin Józef Potocki of Kiev as the potential Polish candidates [4]. In the end, these initial meetings failed to produce a single path forward and the debates continued to rage on. The one set of decisions that the Geheime Conferenz did agree on was for ten Hapsburg cavalry regiments to be roused from their barracks and to be prepared to ride so that when the next order came, if it came, they could be dispatched to the Polish border and or even past the border.

Close to a week after the Hapsburgs heard of Augustus II's death, the French were made aware of it on March 21, 1732. Just like the Hapsburgs, the French treated Augustus II's death as the precipitator of a crisis and most likely war. Accordingly, the highest council of the French government, Conseil d'État (Council of State) met on the same day as news of Augustus II's death reached Versailles. At this council, Germain-Louis Chauvelin, Marquis de Grosbois, the foreign minister of France, spoke first. In this speech, he reminded his colleagues of France's obligation by treaty to support Friedrich August II in his election to the Polish throne [5]. In line with this obligation, Chauvelin suggested that France send the funds and instructions to the French ambassador in Warsaw, Marquis Antoine-Félix de Monti, to provide for the election of Friedrich August II. Furthermore, Chauvelin recommended that France should publically proclaim its intent to protect Poland-Lithuania's right to a "free election". Should France's "eastern rivals" display an intent to violate this "free election" then France must prepare for war to protect Poland-Lithuania and fulfill its obligations to Saxony. This speech, especially its ending, elicited a response from France's leading minister, Cardinal André-Hercule de Fleury. Despite Cardinal Fleury having approved the formation of the Franco-Saxon alliance just a year earlier, in the face of a serious crisis and a real possibility of war he balked at the thought of following through. At his core, Cardinal Fleury was a fearful man and he worried that if France did as Chauvelin asked that it would find itself in another France, another losing war. Due to these fears, Cardinal Fleury asked if France was truly obligated to go to war for Saxony or if France even needed to support Friedrich August II's candidature [6]. The cardinal hoped that the treaty's terms would be loose even to free him from its obligations. The answer that Fleury received from Chauvelin was that the language of the treaty combined with some of Saxony's actions over the past year could allow France to legally void its commitment to Saxony.

Fleury might have hoped to use Chauvelin's answer as a springboard for arguing against involvement in Poland-Lithuania, but before he got the chance to follow up on Chauvelin's answer, one of Fleury's opponents, Marshal Claude Louis Hector de Villars, leader of the war party and successor to Marshal Nicolas Chalon du Ble, rose to speak. Marshal Villars pointed out that France and its honor had been ill-served by the past two decades. Europe viewed the War of the Spanish Succession as a defeat for France, then forgot how easily France trounced the Spaniards in the War of the Quadruple Alliance, just to remember the struggles of the French military during Empress Catherine's War. Europe viewed France as a power that had declined since the times of Louis XIV. Britain was treating France as a junior ally by criticizing France when it failed to adhere to British policy and abstaining from taking any actions to support French policy. Spain once more claimed to be a friend of France but it made demands of France as if Spain was somehow superior. Finally, the German princes all marched in step with the Emperor with only the occasional hesitation. They no longer believed that France could protect their liberties as France had promised to do in 1648. Europe looked down on France and in a way, they were right to. If France wanted to rectify this situation then it first had to rectify the mesalliance of the King with Marie Leszczyńska by restoring her father to his place as King of Poland. If France could amend Louis XV's marriage from being to the daughter of a displaced and exiled nobleman to being to the daughter of King, and better yet if France could make that amendment with a force of arms then France would once more be viewed and treated with the respect due to it [7].

Villars' speech was applauded by the other members of the Conseil d'État including Jean-Frédéric Phélypeaux, Count de Maurepas; Nicolas Prosper Bauyn, seigneur d’Angervilliers; and Louis III Phélypeaux, Count de Saint-Florentin. These men had all once served under Louis XIV and they remembered those days with fondness and pride. They yearned to regain those days and their glory and they viewed Villars' vision as a means of doing just that. For Fleury, Stanislaus Leszczyński's candidature was even more displeasing than Friedrich August II's. Whereas Fleury expected France's support of Friedrich August II to lead to a war, he still thought it might be possible to avoid one even with France supporting him. The same could not be said if France supported Stanislaus Leszczyński. Stanislaus had been forcibly removed from power by the Russians because of his support for the warmongering Charles XII of Sweden. The Russians had branded him a criminal and even with a new emperor who seemed to reject every part of his grandfather's legacy, Fleury was certain that Russia had not changed its opinion of Stanislaus. In other words, Fleury believed that supporting Stanislaus guaranteed a war, a war with a Russian army that had just shown its ability to march into the heart of Germany. What was to prevent that same Russian army from marching to the Rhine and beyond it? Terrified by that prospect, Fleury quickly asked if Stanislaus was even eligible [8]. Had not Stanislaus abdicated his throne in 1709? The answer delivered to Fleury hastily by four different men was no, Stanislaus had not abdicated. Yes, Stanislaus was eligible.

With Fleury's effort to disrupt the calls for Stanislaus so easily overwhelmed, the war party began to discuss the concept in greater detail [9]. Even though they were talking out of order and over one another, they did so out of excitement rather than disagreement. Eventually, Villars was calling for Stanislaus to immediately be dispatched to Poland by sea and for instructions to be delivered to the Marquis de Monti that he should promise money to the magnates if they would elect Stanislaus quickly. With specific policies being advocated, Fleury and Chauvelin both stepped in to argue for caution and patience. Chauvelin went further to ask if it was really the correct idea to abandon the alliance with Saxony and its 30,000-man army. Chauvelin reminded Villars of the damage that the Saxon army had done to the British and suggested that even in its isolation the Saxon army was still a capable fighting force. The Saxon army could hold and would hold long enough for Villars to relieve it. This suggestion that Villars would relieve the Saxon army was a deliberate and not-all-too-well-hidden effort to buy Villars' adherence to the Saxon candidacy with a high and glorious military command. Chauvelin also suggested that maintaining the Saxon alliance was necessary for gaining the trust and allegiance of the Wittelsbach Union. Whereas Saxony by itself was not a particularly strong ally, the Wittelsbach Union effectively dominated all of western Germany and could play a pivotal role in any war. Finally, Chauvelin argued that the British had no love for Stanislaus and thus, France needed to avoid Stanislaus to avoid losing Britain's alliance. Although the other councilors made some counterarguments, Chauvelin's argument for Friedrich August II narrowly held out in the end and France remained committed to the Saxon alliance [10].

For the time being the Conseil d'État remained loyal to Saxony and although the rest of the world suspected as much they could not be certain. For many, the Franco-Saxon alliance was still a murky topic that had never been fully revealed and the general opinion of France left many wondering if France would turn its back on Saxony. The withdrawal of the Saxon courtiers from Warsaw back to Dresden less than three weeks after Augustus II's passing made some believe the Saxons were retreating because they had lost France's support. However, the Saxon withdrawal was just as easily explained by the need of the Saxons to regroup safely within their own borders ahead of a potential war with Prussia, the Hapsburgs, and Russians. Further confusion arose in April 1732 when Louis XV sent a statement to all the courts of Europe in which France bound itself to the protection of a "free election" in Poland [11]. For some, the term "free election" did in fact mean a free election unencumbered by foreign military threats or bribes. In which case, the obvious candidate was Stanislaus who as a native Pole and freedom fighter remained popular among the Polish and Lithuanian magnates. For others, this declaration was simply a precursor to France waging war if anyone tried to stop the French candidate, Friedrich August II, from ascending his throne after French bribes successfully purchased it for him. In the past, French bribes had won the election of 1697 only for Saxon arms to prevent the French candidate, François Louis, Prince of Conti, from becoming King of Poland.

Throughout this time period, the French had done their best to hide their intentions and plans, which involved leaving even their British allies in the dark. This failure to clue in Britain was the result of increasing mistrust between the two allies. Even though the alliance between France and Britain remained in name, in substance the alliance had been rocked by miscoordination during Empress Catherine's War and the Parmese Crisis. The strained nature of the alliance meant that the French did not feel it would be wise to rely on the British in the prospective war with the Hapsburgs and thus did not feel it was necessary to inform the British of their Polish policy. Even though the French did not expect the British to suddenly realign with the Hapsburgs, the French did not need to risk any of their diplomatic or military secrets leaking out to their enemies through an indiscreet British Parliament or ministry. Besides the French belief that Britain would not help in a war, there was also a sentiment in France that if Britain went to war then Britain would collapse. This sentiment is surprising given Britain had not experienced any real political turmoil since the failed Jacobite uprising of 1715. However, the discontent over George II's misrule and perceived corruption within the government was real. The British political elite was upset over Britain's defeats during Empress Catherine's War while the merchants felt that Spanish commercial concessions were not enough. On top of everything, there was a public clamor of the "Prince of Wales" who had been turned into a veritable hero by Tory writers and playwrights. One playwright, Eliza Haywood released a play in February 1732, titled Frederick, Duke of Brunswick-Lunenburgh to commemorate the birthday of the Prince of Wales. This play adapted the tragic life of Prince Frederick of Brunswick-Luneburg's ancestor who had been murdered after he was elected King of the Romans. Although the play was not formally a protest against the government, Haywood's previous anti-Walpolean writings combined with the play's subject matter made it seen as a protest. Accordingly, the play failed to get royal patronage but did receive patronage from various Tories and Opposition Whigs [12]. These types of incidents were construed. or better yet misconstrued, by the French as signs that Sir Robert Walpole and George II's government would fall to revolution if Britain went to war [13].

As the French withheld their intentions, the British and their foreign minister, Lord Townshend, were initially willing to engage with the French politely and gingerly over the topic of the Polish succession. Lord Townshend occasionally asked the French ambassador to Britain, Anne-Théodore Chevignard, Chevalier de Chavigny, if France had determined a policy for the Polish succession yet. Each time, Chavigny offered a noncommital nonanswer as instructed by Chauvelin who wanted no "demarche" given to the British. In response each time, Townshend moved on to other topics of interest such as trade, American affairs, Spain, and so on. However, when Chavigny read Louis XV's declaration of protection for Poland's liberties to Townshend, the British lord could continue this polite and subtle prodding no longer. Instead, he directly asked if this declaration could be considered a precursor to further French action and if that action might be of an offensive nature. Naturally, Chavigny tried to brush aside this question but this time Townshend let the topic pass unanswered [14]. Instead, Townshend reminded Chavigny of the Anglo-French alliance and the cooperation it entailed. Chavigny continued to try to dance around the subject by claiming that the alliance did not include a joint approach to Poland-Lithuania only for Townshend to remind Chavigny that Britain had specifically indicated a willingness to support Stanislaus Leszczyński's candidature alongside France and to even provide funds for his election [15]. This statement put Chavigny noticeably off balance and left him struggling to come up with an adequate answer. As Chavigny had this momentary lapse, Townshend pounced on him and asked if Britain should draw the necessary funds from its banks and instruct its ambassador in Warsaw to begin laying the groundwork for Stanislaus' election. As Chavigny tried to say that Britain need not rush, Townshend suggested that speed was necessary to ensure a favorable outcome for the allies. Townshend pushed on by asking if France could provide a list of which magnates it had already offered so that Britain did not pay the same man twice. Finally, Chavigny felt he could withstand Townshend's inquiries no more and simply stated that he needed to consult with his superiors before making any firm commitments.

In the end, Townshend left his meeting with Chavigny having felt as if he had accomplished nothing but unsettling the French ambassador. Townshend had hoped that by bringing up Britain's previous statements of support for Stanislaus that Chavigny would either confirm French support for Friedrich August II, support for Stanislaus, or reveal that France was still undecided on a candidate. In the former two cases, Townshend would have been able to bring the matter to George II to learn his opinion on the French candidate and determine whether it would be in Townshend's favor to support or oppose the French endeavor. In the final case, Townshend would have been able to open the door to Britain and France selecting a candidate together who could be supported by British money and French arms. In the end, Chavigny, even in his flustered state, revealed nothing. He did not reveal whether French armies would be used to support a French candidate nor did he even reveal if there was a French candidate to be had. Based on the correspondences of Friedrich zu Innhausen und Knyphausen, Townshend was supposed to believe that France had every intention of supporting Friedrich August II. However, Horatio Walpole, former British ambassador to France had already revealed to Townshend that Chauvelin was "the most treacherous, false and ambitious spirit". Townshend's opinion of Fleury was not much better after the last few years. Thus, Townshend was left worrying that that French might betray their Saxon alliance and the flurry of activity coming out of Alsace where Stanislaus was residing did nothing to assuage that concern. Besides all of that, the British foreign ministry was split between thinking whether the bellicose Chauvelin or Fleury was dominant in France and which of the two of them had been responsible for the Saxon alliance in the first place. With all this uncertainty being bounced around, Townshend thought his meeting with Chavigny was a failure that had done nothing to advance British knowledge or policy.

Townshend could not have been more incorrect in believing that his meeting with Chavigny was unimportant. Although Chavigny had revealed nothing to the British, Townshend had revealed one important detail to the French: Britain still remembered its indications of support for Stanislaus' candidature from more than a decade earlier. When this information reached the Conseil d'État, Villars and the rest of the secondary ministers all took that recollection to be a sign of Britain's preference for Stanislaus over any other candidate. Villars argued that if France supported Friedrich August II as it was planning to do that it would lose the friendship of Britain. Already, Britain had told France it wanted Stanislaus as king and if France spat in the face of that then it spat in the face of the Anglo-French Alliance. Villars also reminded his colleagues that Saxony had stolen Grubenhagen from George II's homeland of Brunswick-Luneburg and it was beyond unlikely that the King of Great Britain had forgotten that crime. George II had nearly gone to war with Prussia over stealing an acre of farmland so how could anyone believe that George II would support a Saxon succession in Poland when Saxony had carved a whole principality away from Brunswick-Luneburg? After Villars identified and laid out all the arguments for why Britain wanted Stanislaus rather than Friedrich August II he begun to discuss the military necessity for maintaining Britain's alliance and support. Villars suggested that British support could facilitate an attack on the Southern Netherlands, open the door for naval expeditions into the Baltic and Adriatic against the Russians and Hapsburgs, and would allow the passage of troops from France or Spain into Naples and Sicily.

Desperately, Chauvelin tried to mount a defense of the Saxon alliance and the plan for crowning Friedrich August II but he could not resist the reinvigorated energy of the pro-Stanislaus party. Worse yet, even Fleury was falling in line with the Stanislaus plan as he was caught up in the thought of losing the British alliance entirely after yet another miscoordination. That thought shook Fleury to his bones as it would have guaranteed that France was left isolated in Europe as almost all of France's allies were in truth the allies of Britain. Britain was the one responsible for paying wartime subsidies to the Baltic powers, protecting the Italian ambitions of Spain, and securing the sovereignty of the Dutch Republic. Within Germany, the Wittelsbachs still shied away from committing to a French alliance while the Saxons were far away and supposed by hostile powers. Thus, in the end, Chauvelin, Fleury, and France abandoned the Wettin succession and instead pivoted to raise Stanislaus to the Polish throne to restore the familial honor of the Bourbon dynasty, maintain the British alliance, and most importantly, inflict grave damage against the Hapsburg monarchy [16].

[1] In OTL, Prince Eugene's health was faltering heavily by 1733. I expect that falter started before 1733 so I think it is reasonable to have him encountering the same health issues a year earlier in 1732 in TTL. Additionally, unlike in OTL, Eugene's last five years have been far more stressful and involved him leading a military campaign so he should definitely be experiencing some health issues.
[2] In OTL, there were rumors that Koch was doing some or much of the thinking for Eugene.
[3] Despite Friedrich August II being a fully grown adult with multiple children at this point, he is still a relatively unknown actor at this point. In OTL, there was still uncertainty about his character when the Polish succession crisis began.
[4] These individuals were the OTL Piast candidates. I imagine that they were picked in OTL for their connections to Russia and those connections should be relatively unaltered by the TL so far so I have retained these candidates.
[5] In OTL, Chauvelin remained an advocate of the Saxon alliance during early meetings about the Polish succession. In TTL, he does so as well. Since Chauvelin was not known for his principles but instead for his pragmatic manner, I expect that he had practical reasons for supporting the Saxons. Those practical reasons would be even more emphasized in this TL where Saxony's military prowess has been put on show during Empress Catherine's War.
[6] In OTL, Fleury tried to push France off the course of war by poking holes in the legal reasoning that was used to justify France's drive toward war. Here, Fleury does the same.
[7] In OTL, there was a major interest among the high French officials to enthrone Stanislaus for the simple dynastic reason of making King Louis XV's father-in-law a reigning king.
[8] This is another one of Fleury's efforts to stop the war.
[9] In OTL, Fleury lost out in all his prewar machinations. The reasons for his defeats are unsure. Some have argued that he was amenable to humbling France, others that Chauvelin was simply in the ascendancy at the time and Fleury could not stop him, and some that at this point Louis XV had not yet adopted his pacifistic attitude and was pushing for a war to crown his father-in-law. Any of these viable explanations and from the sources it seems that Fleury only made weak, half-hearted efforts to stop the war, so here he does the same and fails to stop the push toward war.
[10] In OTL, the Saxon policy lost to the Stanislaus policy during these early debates. In TTL, the Saxon victories during Empress Catherine's War make Saxony a more desirable ally and the united German front against France during Empress Catherine's War makes having a German ally more desirable for France. The result is a narrow victory for the Saxon policy in TTL.
[11] In OTL, Louis XV made this declaration or more realistically this declaration was drawn up for him and signed by him. The purpose of this declaration in both OTL and in TTL is to give the French the legal justification to go to war over Poland's election. Basically, if anyone does anything dubious in Poland, France can use that as an excuse to initiate a conflict.
[12] In OTL, this play was produced when Frederick of Wales came to Britain and was meant to be a celebration of his return. In TTL, Frederick has not returned and does not look like he will. This absence combined with Frederick's heroics during the war make him a more popular figure in Britain, especially because he has not been in Britain to hurt his image at all. As a consequence, there is a demand for a play about him despite him being away. In OTL, the play was made seeking royal patronage. In TTL, the greater anti-George II sentiment means that Haywood remains on the anti-Walpolean side of drama and seeks Tory and Opposition patronage instead.
[13] In OTL, the French for some reason expected Britain to fall into a revolution if it went into war. The French brought into parliamentary volatility far too much. In TTL, there has been even more volatility. Even if that does not make a revolution any more likely than it was in OTL, it certainly makes the French belief in a revolution stronger.
[14] In OTL, Chavigny tried to intimidate the British foreign minister, Lord Harrington. In TTL, Townshend is still the foreign minister and I do not see Chavigny taking the same approach. Chavigny has been British ambassador previously during 1724 when Townshend was the foreign minister so he is familiar with him and knows that Townshend is not someone who can be intimidated. Instead, of intimating Townshend, Chavigny decides to play defense.
[15] Britain agreed to support Stanislaus while before the Polish election. In OTL, Britain's rift with France was much larger during the crisis so Britain did not bother following up on this promise and France did not bother asking. In TTL, Britain's rift is smaller. Still, the reason Britain even brought up the promise is for diplomatic fencing rather than actually proposing a course of action.
[16] The earlier decision to support the Saxon plan was only narrowly made. With the idea that Britain is more favorable to Stanislaus, the French pivot quickly toward Stanislaus.

Word Count: 5660

 

[Archduke]

38: Memories of the Grand Siecle

Armand de Vignerot du Plessis, duc de Richelieu, a possible author of "Means to defend the liberty of Poland"​

Once France had finally and definitely settled on Stanislaus Leszczynski as its favored candidate for the next King of Poland, the many bureaucracies and councils that Louis XIV had constructed or reformed to power and support his war machine reawakened for the second time in five years. The energy and excitement that permeated through that war machine were far greater than that which France held in 1727. The generals, intendants, and statement could feel that this war would be different despite the fact that most of France's top posts remained filled with the same individuals who had led France into a dismal performance in Empress Catherine's War. Even with almost everyone in France expecting Britain to stay out of this war rather than committing tens of thousands of soldiers onto the Continent, the French imagined that this war would go much better than the last. At the same time, the French were not cowed by the possibility that Russia, the Hapsburgs, and Prussia would all unite in opposition to Stanislaus and France. So much seemed to be going against France yet France carried with it a prideful confidence reminiscent of the reign of Louis XIV.

The unsettling difference in France's vigorous and determined sentiment in 1732 relative to its lethargic and unfocused approach to Empress Catherine's War is the result of a series of small yet incredibly significant changes in France since 1727. The first of those changes was the transition in the leadership of the war party from Marshal d'Huxelles to Marshal Villars. Although Marshal d'Huxelles was arguably an even more dedicated servitor of Louis XIV and his visions for France than Marshal Villars, by 1727 d'Huxelles was an old and beaten man. Just a decade earlier his fervent defense of a Franco-Spanish alliance had ended in disaster when Spain's Cellamare plot against France was discovered. In the wake of that event, d'Huxelles was forced to submit himself entirely to the Duke of Orleans and even had to kiss the Treaty of the Quadruple Alliance, which directly targeted Spain. Afterward, d'Huxelles receded and grew old. By the time that France was being dragged into Empress Catherine's War, d'Huxelles lacked the energy to oppose Cardinal Fleury's toothless war effort in the north. Nor was d'Huxelles very interested in designing a strategy for Marshal Berwick that might cripple Spain, a country that d'Huxelles still considered to be France's natural ally. Although d'Huxelles would show some gusto during the Parmese Succession Crisis he lacked the strength to assert himself over Fleury. Instead, Fleury's strategy to withhold support from Spain and negotiate separately from Britain is the one that France followed. This final failure proved to be too much for d'Huxelles to carry on and he died in late 1731.

The death of d'Huxelles allowed the hero of the War of the Spanish Succession, Marshal Villars, to become the new leader of the war party. Even though Villars was not much younger than d'Huxelles, just a year younger, he had much more energy late in life than his late brother-in-arms. Additionally, Villars unlike d'Huxelles had never been publically humbled and humiliated so he remained an unabashed and proud disciple of Louis XIV's France. For these two reasons, when war was once more on the horizon Villars was willing to stand up and directly oppose the pacific tendencies of Fleury and the pragmatic calculations of Chauvelin. Even though Villars early on was bought off by visions of one final campaign into the heart of Germany, as soon as the opportunity presented itself for him to champion an even more aggressive and patriotic vision he did just that. Villars pushed that vision with so much fire and zeal that this time he forced both Fleury and Chauvelin to bend to his will rather than either of theirs. Besides Villars' greater spirit, his legendary status among the people and nobility of France allowed him to succeed where d'Huxelles failed. Thus, this singular change in the leadership of the war party facilitated a push toward war and one that was more in line with the France of old. With the glorious goal of re-establishing the prestige of the House of Bourbon, the old servitors and soldiers of Louis XIV's France that held positions throughout France's government were roused into hungry aggression like they had not been since Louis XIV himself led them.

The other change in France that helped bring back the France of old was even more subtle than the succession of d'Huxelles by Villars. This second change was the quiet but steady ascendancy of Chauvelin. Since he was first placed in a position of great power in 1727, he had slowly gained more and more power within France's government. By the time Augustus II had died and a succession crisis began, Chauvelin was viewed as the equal of Cardinal Fleury by many outside of France. Some even suspected that Chauvelin had achieved superiority over Fleury. Of course, the truth is far from this as Fleury still retained King Louis XV's ear and dominance over most of France's government. Still, the perceptions of Chauvelin as Fleury's equal revealed that Chauvelin had obtained an incredible amount of power within France [1]. The foreign ministry seemed to be entirely in his hands and the army was more responsive to him than its actually minister, d’Angervilliers. As a consequence, one would have expected that Chauvelin could have determined France's path into a war over Poland. However, Chauvelin lost to Villars. This loss was not the consequence of a forfeit but rather a true defeat.

It is important to realize that Chauvelin was a member of a new breed of French statesman. These new French statesmen recognized the errors of Louis XIV much like Orleans had and Fleury did. However, these statesmen also rejected the fearful and self-restraining ideals of Orleans and Fleury that often put France at the mercy of British leadership. This breed was not the same as the dynastic servitors of the House of Bourbon and loyalists to Louis XIV's memory that Villars represented [2]. Despite these differences and despite Chauvelin's defeat, he and the other members of this new, revisioned France such as René-Louis de Voyer de Paulmy, Marquis d'Argenson, were not intent on hamstringing France's war efforts as Fleury did during Empress Catherine's War. Instead, even if Chauvelin disagreed with the way in which France was finding itself at war, he still agreed that a war against the Hapsburgs was the correct course of action for France. Whether fighting in the name of Friedrich August or Stanislaus, a Polish election offered the perfect excuse to break the Hapsburgs and reassert the power of France. For this reason rather than sabotage the war as Fleury might have, Chauvelin poured all his energy into planning and preparing for it. With this type of support from the very top, the rest of France's war machine could be unleashed.

Evidence of the reanimated zealotry of France's war machine is best seen in a series of anonymous French memoirs, unofficial French government policy documents [3]. The first of these memoirs was titled "Means to defend the liberty of Poland" but its contents described anything but a defense of Poland. Instead, the memoir called for the orchestration of a European wide alliance to overwhelm and crush the Hapsburgs from every direction. The very first pages of the memoir made this goal clear by brazenly calling for France to engage and ally with both Wurttemberg and Lorraine, traditional servants of the Hapsburg-led Holy Roman Empire. According to the memoir, France should offer to raise Eberhard Ludwig of Wurttemberg to the title of Imperial Elector, award him with Swabian towns, and reopen the question of who should get to succeed his family once his sickly son passed. The former two of these offers called back to half-hearted negotiations between Eberhard Ludwig and France during the War of the Spanish Succession whereas the latter offered Eberhard Ludwig an opportunity to decide his future. For Lorraine, France recalled a plan of James Stanhope to reallocate the Southern Netherlands from the Hapsburgs to the Lorrainers. In return, France would receive the whole of Lorraine and Bar and Francis Stephen marrying a Frenchwomen instead of Maria Theresa. From these two passages alone it was clear that the author of the memoir wanted to completely disrupt the established status quo of the Holy Roman Empire and break the standing loyalty of the Imperial princes to the Hapsburg Holy Roman Emperor.

This idea was further hammered in by the memoir's approach to the Wittelsbach Union. The memoir vehemently defended Palatinate-Sulzbach's right to succeed in Julich and Berg instead of Brandenburg. For the Wittelsbachs of Bavaria, France was to offer the rich fortress of Mantua. Behind each Palatinate and Bavaria, their ecclesiastical brothers in Mainz and Cologne were expected to follow. However, the memoir did hint at offering bribes to the two Archbishop-Electors as needed. This strong argument over the extremely contentious issue of Julich-Berg and the call for Wittelsbachs in Italy emphasized the author's desire to significantly repaint the European map. That desire was also illustrated by the memoir's unexpected call for a reorganization of northern Germany. There, France would promise Schleswig to Holstein, Oldenburg to Brunswick-Luneburg, and Emden to the Dutch Republic. Although the memoir suggested that the wars against Denmark-Norway and East Frisia that these sessions required would be delayed until after the Polish war, the memoir did demand that recipients of these lands avail their armies to France immediately.

Already the memoir had described substantial changes to European politics, but these changes paled in comparison to the memoir's vision of eastern Europe and Italy. In eastern Europe, the French would first compensate Prussia for losing out on Julich-Berg by giving them Thorn, Elbing, and Marienburg from Poland. Next, as additional rewards for Prussia's betrayal of the Emperor, Lusatia was to be transferred from Saxony to Brandenburg. Saxony would also lose Grubenhagen to Brunswick-Luneburg to compensate King George II for bringing the Hessians into the war. Finally, the memoir proposed to steal Russia away from its alliance with the Hapsburgs by allowing a Russian readjustment of its borders with Poland. In Italy, the memoir planned for the complete ejection of the Hapsburgs. Already, the memoir had given Mantua to Bavaria. After that, the memoir gave the Milanese to Savoy but in return, the geographic Duchy of Savoy would fall to France. Meanwhile, Spain would be drawn into the war by the incredible offer of Naples, Sicily, and the Cremonese all for Duke Carlo of Parma.

Overall, this first memoir was a very ambitious one that detailed a plan to unite France, Britain, Spain, Prussia, Russia, the Dutch Republic, Brunswick-Luneburg, Bavaria, the Palatinate, Mainz, Cologne, Finland, Bremen-Verden, Wurttemberg, Lorraine, and Parma all against the Hapsburgs and Saxons. Through a series of land exchanges and conquests across Europe, France was supposed to buy the allegiance of this coalition. The ultimate goal of the memoir was to create a Europe in which France was again the premier and leading power. The memoir wanted to make France a hegemon in all but name. Proof of this goal can be seen in how the memoir was also organizing future wars against Denmark-Norway and Frisia. The war against Denmark-Norway could have helped France achieve influence over Baltic trade whereas the war against Frisia would have demonstrated that France, not the Holy Roman Emperor, was the most important arbiter in Germany. With such lofty goals and somewhat reasonable means of achieving them, the initial memoir was well-received in France's court. Many saw it as a perfect means of regaining France's glory, disabling the Hapsburgs, and showing the British who was the leader of their alliance. Some courtiers including the youthful Armand de Vignerot du Plessis, duc de Richelieu, went so far as to call for the memoir to be used as a blueprint for the war. Despite this warm response, the author of the memoir never came forward to reveal himself.

One reason for the author's continued anonymity was probably the fact that the premier of France and his lieutenant had a very different reaction than the rest of France. At the very top of France, Fleury and Chauvelin were both alarmed and disturbed by the memoir. For Fleury, the memoir clearly demanded a full-out war, the idea of which Fleury could not stand. Fleury not only abhorred the idea of throwing the countless lives away necessary to fulfill the memoir he also feared that the memoir would send France spiraling back in time. Fleury feared that led by memoirs such as that one, France would once again chase after unachievable goals and ruin itself in the process. For Chauvelin, the memoir seemed amateurish and misguided. The memoir's belief that Russia could be bought off so easily or that France needed to fight both Denmark-Norway and the Saxons seemed ludicrous. The Russians dominated Poland for years so if they had wanted Polish land then they would have taken it already. Denmark-Norway was an ally of Britain with a large army and competent navy, which would serve France much better as allied forces rather than enemies. Finally, even though France had reneged on its Polish promise toward Saxony, France could still retain the friendship and alliance of Saxony with the right incentives. This pragmatic response to the memoir seemed to trickle down to the level of memoir writers as a succeeding memoir contained ideas similar to those of Chauvelin.

This second anonymous memoir, "Means to use against the Tsar", suggested that the ideas of "Means to defend the liberty of Poland" carried some merit in the Low Countries, Western Germany, and Italy. However, in northern Germany and in eastern Europe, "Means to use against the Tsar" suggested that the Russians could not be purchased with Polish lands. In fact, the Russians could not be bought at all because just as France was driven by memories of Louis XIV, Russia was driven by memories of Peter I. Accordingly, Russia wanted to do more than just take from Poland, it wanted to dominate eastern Europe and the Baltic. For this reason, Russia needed to be regarded as an enemy to be defeated not a rival to be bought. To achieve this defeat, the second memoir offered Karelia and Saint Petersburg to the Kingdom of Finland and its Russian Tsarevna. Denmark-Norway would be included in this anti-Russian alliance by allowing it to keep Schleswig. Meanwhile, Sweden would be drawn into the war by promises of Livonia and Estland but the King of Sweden would also be asked to bring into the war his Hessian army. Next, rather than Poland giving land to Russia, it would retake Courland, Smolensk, and Ukraine all from Russia. Finally, in the south, the Ottomans were supposed to launch a massive invasion that conquered the Caspian and Caucasus with brief mentions of missions against Belgrade and into Poland. Through this plan, Russia was going to be reduced to a second-tier power while Finland, Sweden, Poland, and the Ottomans were turned into an unbreakable wall against Russia's westward ambitions. Further west, the memoir sought to include Saxony by giving it the bulk of Silesia as compensation for Poland. Meanwhile, Britain was to be brought into the war by returning Grubenhagen to Brunswick-Luneburg and Prussia was to be purchased with a few bailliages in northern Silesia.

This second memoir much like the first one was well-received by the French as it had played on the idea that Russia was a would-be hegemon just like the Hapsburgs that needed to be beaten down. At the same time, this memoir being viewed as a revision to the first memoir was seen as much more realistic by individuals like Chauvelin and d'Argenson. Nevertheless, those sentiments did not stop further memoirs were popping up. Some called for more ambitious plans such as annexing the Southern Netherlands to France. Altogether, these memoirs served as a powerful representation of the feelings among France's elite about the state of the nation and the goals that they expected the government to pursue. Clearly, despite Fleury, the French elite still considered France a powerful country that could determine Europe's politics with its arms and its diplomacy. Although some courtiers admitted that Louis XIV's policies had gone too far and bankrupted France, few thought that Orleans and Fleury's austere foreign policy was still necessary. Beyond just believing that France was capable of pursuing a more robust policy, the elite seemed to believe that France should pursue a more robust and aggressive policy. For some, it was an issue of pride, for others it was France's destiny, but whatever the reason the majority of France's nobility and officer corps thought that France should take advantage of the Polish crisis to do more than just help install Stanislaus on the throne. Just as Spain had used Empress Catherine's War to claw back its place in Europe as a primary power, France needed to use a Polish war to retake its place as Europe's first power.

[1] These perceptions are based mainly on the OTL British view of France's internal politics.
[2] The way I see it, there are really two main factions in France at this time. One is the old servitors of Louis XIV who served at least some time under Louis XIV and fully embraced his ambitious and sometimes unwieldy world view. The other faction is represented by Chauvelin and is often mistake for the former faction. The latter faction views France as strong and capable and thinks France should use its strength to impose its will on Europe, similar to Louis XIV. However, this new group is nuanced and pragmatic in its approach. Whereas Louis XIV had some unbending points, this new group and Chauvelin are much more willing to compromise to push France forward. Fleury is obviously in neither of these factions and represents a pacific, clerical aberration at the head of French politics.
[3] Unofficial memoirs are essentially French white papers at this time and are used to publicize the viewpoints of second-tier statesmen rather than individuals like Fleury and Chauvelin. The memoirs in this chapter are fictitious but have basings in real memoirs written ahead of and during the War of the Polish Succession.

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