[LAFAYETTE]. - - Lot 190

[LAFAYETTE]. - LA TOUR-MAUBOURG (Charles-César de Fay de). 1756–1831. General, politician, close associate of La Fayette. 3 letters from the author to Citizen Romeuf, c/o General Dumas, Councilor of State. (Paris), circa 1801–1802. 5 pp. ½ in-12, including address on the reverse, postmarks. CORRESPONDENCE WITH LAFAYETTE’S FORMER AIDE-DE-CAMP, regarding the promotion of émigré officers, notably Saint-Marcel, formerly of La Fayette’s general staff, and the process of securing recommendations from ministries and various administrative offices. He plans to go to Passy “to send LAFAYETTE’s package to Chavagnac” and apologizes for his indiscretion in this matter; “I respect the sentiment that leads you to accommodate General Dumas’s wishes and that prompts you to turn a blind eye to the impropriety of associating with your cause individuals who are unconnected to it (…). I had made every effort not to take on the mission that Lafayette had entrusted to me with the minister: 1) because I had a personal interest in it; 2° because I am ill-suited to negotiations, but above all because I disapproved of our unique cause taking on a scope that would be detrimental to it (…). Given the desire Lafayette had expressed to me, I at least did not want La Colombe [Lafayette’s former aide-de-camp] and my brother (…) to be able to reproach me for having helped bring their younger brother back into the ranks as a general when both of them are returning only as brigade commanders. For it is quite certain that the note regarding La Colombe will serve no purpose, and when Victor becomes a brigadier general for a second time, he will not be criticized for not having earned it. Based on these considerations, we had rewritten the letter at the time of Lafayette’s departure; it did not specify any rank, which gave Dumas the leeway to have the Bureaux promote his brother to the rank of general (…). “He has just written to Lafayette, stating that he does not wish to be involved in their affairs. ‘I urge him to begin with the matter of the National Guard, and once that is settled, he should address the issue of the prisoners at Rochefort.’ If, however, they persist in demanding that he handle them together, God forbid that I should be a hindrance. In that case, he will not entrust me with any steps and will remove my name from the list (…).” 17 Fructidor. La Tour-Maubourg thanked him for La Fayette’s letter, which would be delivered to the minister, but did not believe the matter would come to fruition; “It seems to me that only Dumouriez can appoint Captain St-Marcel as a brigade general. Since he was not one when L.F. [La Fayette] left, and since he takes his scruples so far as to have presented Victor and La Colombe only as brigade commanders even though they were generals; because he had not seen them wear the uniform or perform their duties. I suppose that L.F. will have told the colonel and the minister what was appropriate regarding the prisoners at Rochefort, and that the case for prisoners of war is better presented orally than in writing (…). My duty forbids me from deviating from the letter of instructions that L.F. has endorsed (…).” January 7. Letter of thanks for this news and for his devotion to his family. “(…) I have been told a truly frightening account of your journey from Italy to Paris. I would like to be sure that neither you nor your brother are suffering any further from the effects of those incidents (…).” He is grateful “for all your extreme kindness toward my unfortunate uncle, whom you were kind enough to care for so well in Malta.”