1My story would be incomplete did I not follow the royal family in their flight from the moment that they left the Palace of Tuileries, till their appearance at the top of the Rue des Réligieuses; and did I not tell you through what circumstances M. Drouet was led to make his appearance in time to change the face of events, and to give that terrible blow to the throne of the Bourbons which occasioned Louis XVI not only the loss of his crown, but of his head.

2I have already told you that Mirabeau, on his death-bed, asserted that the King’s only hope rested in flight now that he was deprived of his assistance.

3From that moment, Louis XVI had but one idea—to leave Paris—to leave France—to fly to a foreign land.

4We have mentioned the date of April, 1791.

5This is what happened on that date.

6The King had wished to go to St. Cloud; that was on the Easter Monday.

7The King, the Queen, the bishops, the servants, filled the carriages in which they were to make the short travel of two leagues; but the people prevented the King from leaving the Tuileries.

8The King insisted; the tocsin of Saint Roch began to sound an alarm.

9He leaned back in his carriage; thousands of voices cried, “No, no! He is going to fly!”

10“I love you too well to leave you!” said the King.

11“We, also, love you!” replied the spectators, with one voice; “but you alone!”

12The Queen, shut out from the love of France, wept and stamped; but, for all that, was obliged to re-enter the Tuileries.

13The King was a prisoner, there was no doubt about it; but it is permitted to a prisoner to escape.

14From this moment the King prepared for flight.

15Two other parties were as desirous as the King that he should leave France.

16The one, the Royalist party, because the King, once free, would be able to re-enter France with a foreign army; the other, the Republican party, because they could not form a republic, without cutting his head off.

17Therefore, one will perceive that they who arrested the King belonged to a third party—the Constitution.

18His decision taken, the King began to put it into execution.

19The Queen was the mainspring of the plot; the princesses of the house of Austria have been invariably evil genii to the Kings of France—Marie de Medicis, Anne of Austria, Marie Antoinette, and Marie Louise.

20The King might have fled alone, and that was the idea that first occurred to him; in which case he would have travelled on horseback.

21But, during the terrible night of the 5th of October, the Queen became so frightened, that she made the King swear never to leave France without her and their children.

22It was then resolved that they should all, King, Queen, and children, fly together.

23That doubled, trebled, and quadrupled the difficulty, and made escape almost an impossibility.

24The Queen undertook the deception.

25The Queen had more interest than the King in leaving France. Hear you that cry of the 18th of April, 1791, which interpreted the feelings of a nation, and which said, “We, also, sire! We love you, but you alone!”

26In January, 1791, the flight was resolved upon.

27In February, the King wrote to M. de Bouillé:—

28“I have overtures to make to you on the part of M. Mirabeau. The Count de Lamark will be our intermediate.”

29He added:—

30“Although these people are not very estimable, still I have paid M. Mirabeau a good sum of money. I think that he will be useful.”

31M. de Bouillé replied:—

32“Cover with gold the defection of Mirabeau. He is an accomplished scoundrel, who will repair, through cupidity, the evil that he has worked through vengeance; but defy Lafayette, enthusiastic, chimerical, capable, perhaps, of being the chief of a party, but incapable of supporting a monarchy.”

33Remark that De Bouillé was the cousin of Lafayette. He was not, as one can see, blinded by the relationship.

34About the end of April, the King wrote again to M. de Bouillé.

35“I go out almost incessantly in my carriage with all my family—a carriage made expressly to hold all.”

36M. de Bouillé replied:—

37“In the place of that berlin expressly made, and which will naturally draw attention, it will be more prudent for your Majesty to use two English coaches.”

38The coaches mentioned were the post-chaises in common use at that period.

39The counsel was good, but the Queen combated the idea. She did not wish to be separated from the King, and did not wish the children to be separated from herself.

40M. de Bouillé continued:—

41“Have with you in your perilous journey a man with the head of a Solon, and the arm of a Hercules—one who can plan and execute. I can point such a man out to you. He is the Marquis d’Agout, Major of the French Guards.”

42The King adopted this counsel. We will see, later on, how it was that M. d’Agout did not arrive at Varennes.

43The King, in a third letter, asked M. de Bouillé to establish relays from Châlons to Montmedy, his intention being to avoid Rheims, where he had been consecrated, and might be recognized, and pass through Varennes.

44M. de Bouillé replied, that in passing through Rheims, the carriage blinds could be drawn down; but that he was sorry that the King persisted in using that noticeable berlin; that at two points on the road to Varennes there were no post-horses, so it would be necessary to send some; and, lastly, that as there were no soldiers on that route, it would be necessary to order up some detachments, which might excite suspicion.

45The King persisted in going the Varennes route.

46He sent a million in assignats to M. de Bouillé, to defray whatever expenses there might be with regard to troops, &c. , &c. , and asked him to send an experienced officer to reconnoitre the road to Varennes.

47M. de Bouillé could not but obey so positive a command.

48He sent, on the 10th of June, M. Goguelot to reconnoitre—a mission fitted only for a courageous and intelligent officer.

49M. Goguelot was both.

50On the appointed day the detachment set out.

51One might have seen a train of artillery of six pieces setting out for Montmedy, the Royal Germans taking the Stenay route, a squadron of hussars going towards Dun, and another towards Varennes; and at the same time, fifty detached men under the command of M. de Choiseul, pushed on for Pont-de-Somme-Vesles, where the King would meet them as first post.

52Afterwards, at St. Menehould, he would have found a detachment of dragoons, under the command of M. Dandouins.

53At Clermont he would have found another detachment, under the command of M. de Damas.

54He would have found the relays and a detachment of hussars, under the command of MM. Bouillé, fils, and De Raigecourt, at Varennes, and at Stenay he would have found M. Stenay in person.

55All being arranged, the King wrote to De Bouillé, fixing the day for the 19th of the June following.