A Fractured Fibula (A Napoleonic Europe TL)

[Devvy]

A History of Modern Europe

The Treaty of Tilsit is often regarding as one of the major turning points of Modern Europe. The begrudging peace between what were two of the Imperial Mights of Europe spelled out peace across the continent. Only the third Imperial(3); Great Britain remained hostile to the French who had swept across Europe in a blaze. Formal peace between these two would not be obtained for another decade (the late 1820s), but a cessation of hostilities was obtained in the 1810s. France could not invade Great Britain, and Great Britain could not project her force far beyond the coast line.

Before I commence on my historical studies trip around Europe from CUA Hull(1), I've had to obtain my long-term visa. It's a bit bizarre having to obtain a visa for long-term study in Europe (although short-term visitors are welcome enough) with it's 21 mile trip over the sea, but being to walk straight in to Scandinavia which is further away. I guess politics are a funny creature.

I had to book my flights a few weeks ago, and for that I've had to travel down to Cublington Airport on the train. It would of been far easier if I could have used Birmingham or Manchester, but those didn't have decent flights to Konigsberg from which to travel on to Tilsit. It would of been easier still if I could of used White Rose Airport, but that's only for MTA(2) travel unfortunately as they lack the proper passport and customs inspection points.

Upon arrival in Konigsberg, I've made my way to the Napoleonic Museum of Konigsberg; one of several dotted around Europe. It was used by Napoleon I himself as a place to recover after signing the Treaty of Tilsit; somehow the guy managed to fracture his fibula after getting off the raft from signing the Treaty. Makes me laugh; the guy has literally redrawn the political map of Europe, swept away centuries old institutions and alliances, and then breaks his leg disembarking a raft. The frailties of the human body..... Many say that's when Napoleon I started to consolidate his new Europe rather then engaging in endless battles. There are many old and faded portraits of the man on the walls here, I suppose hailing a better time not only of prestige but also funding. Everywhere in Europe has struggled with budget cuts in recent years.

The trip out to Tilsit is a bit brighter though. The bloody Frenchie in the taxi I'm sure ripped me off. I mean 40 Francs is a bit steep? The guy pretended not to speak English either; good thing I speak a bit of French. Not as much as my Nordic, but enough to get by. The memorial plaque next to the River Neman testifies to the spot that Napoleon I and Alexander I signed the Treaty. It's quite a wonder how these two managed to work out what turned out to be a lasting peace, even with Louise of Prussia muttering in Napoleon's ear. Napoleon managed to exact agreement on the new Polish state (what was then the Grand Duchy of Warsaw, and now is technically the "Kingdom of Poland and Lithuania"), and sought to achieve a lasting peace with other little formalities. An agreement of non-interference with other's wars was also included - primarily aimed at keeping Russia out of Napoleon's war with Britain, but was equally as pertinent to Russia's feud with the Ottoman Empire. It didn't last particularly long, when compared to the vast stretches of time looking back, but it does seem to have bought Napoleon the time he needed to stablise his Empire.

A separate but related secondary treaty was signed between France and Prussia. Prussia lost all it's territories west of the Elbe river, and lost it's Partitions of Poland in order to create the new Grand Duchy of Warsaw. This was one of Napoleon's masterstrokes that has earnt him the reputation of "the masterminder" in his later days. In creating the new Polish State, he created not only a territory that would be semi-dependent on him due to the history of Partition between Prussia, Austria and Russia, but also a territory which would love him for resurrecting that very state. And to be fair to him, it played out exactly as that; a Napoleonic bulkhead, a faithful ally and protector of the border, it's very existence testament to that fact.

As the plaque as the site put it's "This Treaty forever marked the frontier of what we now know as Europe, and began the road to consolidation of our Confederation. It marked the restoration of Polish nationhood and the accession of Prussia to Europe." Earlier attempts by the Polish Prince Stanislaw III to make the plaque say "Polish freedom" were quickly stamped out by the Prussians upon whose land the plaque stands. Whether the Polish were free before the creation of the Grand Duchy is a matter of debate, but the debate and wording of the plaque is testament to the phrase "History is written by the Victor". My old history teacher, Mr Svensson, at York drummed that in to me; that nothing in history can be written, or will be written, with pure facts.

I've grabbed a quick coffee in Cafe Pere in order to survive the returning trip to Konigsberg. I can't say Cafe Pere is a particularly pleasant experience; the French mega enterprise has taken most of the quality out of coffee in their spread across Imperial Europe. This particular branch is of note though - it's the branch furthest east still inside Europe. One of my friends in Hull calls it "Smokeachino's" due to it's usually smokey atmosphere inside in France. In and out as quickly as possible, then back to check in to the hotel. Thankfully the receptionist speaks fluent English, so little problem there. I wish I could stay at The Griset in town...somewhat beyond my price range I would think. For now, ExpressInn will have to suffice.

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(1) Commonwealth Universities Association; an international association of universities in the Commonwealth area.
(2) Mutual Travel Area; a passport and customs free zone signed by the United Kingdom & Scandinavia.
(3) Imperial; slang for one of the great powers of the world, either then and now, as the biggest powers have traditionally been "Empires".


Notes:
Something along these lines has been on my mind for a long time as I've wikipedia'd the Napoleonic Wars and read countless threads on here about the subject. I've decided to write it as pocket diary/notes of a student from the present day in this TL, looking back, as I like the ability to "travel round" and gradually discover more details about what has come to pass.

The main PoD is that at the Treaty of Tilsit, Alexander I does not agree to enter the Continental System (with Napoleon begrudgingly accepting that) due to his annoyance at the enactment of the Polish State (which is a Grand Duchy here). Napoleon and Alexander to agree a peace treaty, with Russia agreeing to French domination of Europe, and both agreeing to non-interference in the other's matters. Further, as an initial "butterfly" to this, Napoleon fractures his fibula getting off the raft after signing the Treaty. These kind of fractures are usually quick to recover from, but provide a very visual reminder to yourself of human frailty, and here it's a visual "prod" to Napoleon that no-one lasts for ever, and so he starts to take Tallyrand's advise to consolidate his empire seriously. Obviously this means that the Spanish Ulcer will be dealt with differently as he seeks to settle his empire. But we'll get to that in good time!

Lastly, I'm always open to feedback, advice, comments, corrections - I'm never above making a correction (or a rewrite if necessary!). Thanks!

 

[Devvy]

Chapter 2

My next trip is heading out to Vilnius, although most of my friends would probably rather head south to the party town of Bialystok. That place has one hell of a reputation, I'll give it that. However, Vilnius' stunning architecture and cityscape is what draws me in, so much that Henri V called it the "Jerusalem of the North". The train was running a bit late, an unusual situation on the TVE network, so I arrived into Vilnius 40 minutes late. Only one stop though at Kaunas, so it still didn't take up too much of my day. Vilnius' history is inextricably linked with Bialystok though. In the years following the Treaty of Tilsit, France and Russia followed a rough peace. However, following rumoured French interest in expanding into the Balkans following the Austrian Submission of 1811, by 1822 the two Imperials were in each other's faces again.

War was declared, and the final 19th Century Coalition was formed; the UK and Russia as the opponents. The Russian Army and "Le Grand Armee" eventually faced each other near Bialystok, with the Russians being crushed. It was the defining moment of Napoleon's reign; after this, both the UK and Russia eventually accepted French domination of Europe. The UK turned away completely; it's visions firmly set on overseas adventures, beginning it's times of "Glorious Isolation". Scandinavia (although it was still technically Denmark-Norway and Sweden-Finland at the time) was the only exception the the British cold shoulder, which grew closer to it's centuries old "brother" of the UK. I seem to quickly get sidetracked. Anyhow, the French-Russian treaty, which was retrospectively named "The Peace of Europe", awarded substantial lands to Poland, which now reached as far north as Riga, and as east as Vilnius. The earlier agreement between France and Russia about non-interference was duly re-enacted as well, and this time, it seemed to stick. I would hazard a guess that Napoleon used the words "last chance" before leaving Alexander to his Russia.

Russia's interest in Europe was completely quashed in later decades when successor Nicolas I sought to invade neighbouring Scandinavia in order to regain prestige and some interests in Europe without directly fighting Imperial Europe. This was one of his most ill-advised moves, and definitely set the stage for the later domestic problems and rebellions that Russia faced in later decades. His forces were crushed by the Scandinavians (with assistance from Britain, which solidified their partnership), who then managed to regain most of old Finland, although leaving the border some distance short of St Petersburg. Russian interests turned south, where they would continue to spar with the then decaying Ottoman Empire in decades to come along with the French and British.

The annihilation of Russian interests in the area led to Napoleonic recognition of the Polish Parliament proclamation of the "Kingdom of Poland". The statue to Potocki, Prime Minister of Poland at the time, still stands on Constitution Hill, opposite the statue of Napoleon Bonaparte, "Liberator of the Poles" as the inscription says.

Looking back however, it was this premature state of affairs in Poland, (in Napoleon's view) declaring themselves a Kingdom that led to the Grand Duchy of Lithuania being left separate (in contrast to the previous century's Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth). Lithuania, proclaimed a few years earlier was adjusted, with the Lithuania capital at the ancient city of Vilnius, with the youngest brother of Frederick I (now King of Poland), Prince Maximillian, declared Grand Duke of Lithuania. Upon his accession to the Lithuanian Grand Duchy, he interestingly did not renounce his rights to the Thrones of Poland or Saxony, a move which would have large ramifications later.

Without delving too far into the history of Saxony, in what some might call a poetic turn, the line to the Saxon Throne died out. As the House of Wettin moved towards dying out in the 1839, the Saxon and Polish Thrones looked like it would be falling into the hands of Duke Maximilian of Lithuania. Many Saxon Landtag members did not exactly relish the prospect of personal union with both Poland and Lithuania; they saw a future for Saxony where it was dominated by a resurgent Poland-Lithuania, and opposition to it became widespread. Apparently a German Kingdom should never be subordinate, or less important then another state. Same old Germans...delusions of grandeur aplenty. You can see the opposition in documents from the time, although those are in Leipzig where I am yet to visit.

As it was, the Polish-Saxon personal union split. The Polish Throne, with widespread public backing, was offered to Augustus of Lithuania, who had succeeded Maximilian, who duly accepted - but under a Polish Pacta Conventa. Later on, in 1848, the new Pacta Conventa (heavily based upon the original Henrician Articles) would be extended to form the basis of a Union between Poland and Lithuania as the two countries peacefully remerged.

Reasons for the two countries remerging have varied over the years, but most Lithuanian sources place reasons at the foot of an unstable Russia next door to them, and having the opportunity to extend the liberally-minded Polish Pacta Conventa over themselves again (as opposed to the more absolute situation at that point). The same sources also advocate the success of the Union, as the Russian Bear later attacked Scandinavia, rather then a Polish-Lithuanian Union, within Napoleonic Europe - although most scholars doubt Russia would have attacked Napoleonic Europe anyhow. Technically, the country is still called the "Kingdom of Poland and Lithuania", although it is usually abbreviated to just "Poland", with the current King of Poland & Lithuania Josef V.